


Nothin' But Ducks

by IdiotsPlayingVideoGames



Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Grand Theft Auto Setting, Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Fake AH Crew, GTA AU, Gen, Like not super GTA AU but that's where the idea came from so I'm sticking with it, Lots of Cursing, Pre-Fake AH Crew, Suicide Squad AU, cursing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-20
Updated: 2018-02-26
Packaged: 2019-02-04 14:31:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 24,682
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12773043
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IdiotsPlayingVideoGames/pseuds/IdiotsPlayingVideoGames
Summary: When there's no one to trust, sometimes the only option is to turn to the untrustworthy.Two FBI agents bring together six super-powered criminals in order to create a task force to save the world. Or at least the nation. It's impossible to tell how far the corruption runs when the Corpirate is the one behind it. With time running out, they're forced to place their hopes in a ragtag group of dysfunctional criminals.Well, the world was screwed anyways.





	1. Prologue

A clock ticked in the quiet office of Director of Intelligence Burnie Burns. The two agents standing before him waited for him to finish reviewing their report. The pair were a stark contrast to each other in both features and personality. The one with a full beard stood steady with his imposing stature while the other was slimmer and shifted on his feet. Burns shuffled the papers for the fifth time, starting from the front of the stack again.

The larger agent cleared his throat. “Sir?”

A clock ticked in the quiet office of Director of Intelligence Burnie Burns. The two agents standing before him waited for him to finish reviewing their report. The pair were a stark contrast to each other in both features and personality. The one with a full beard stood steady with his imposing stature while the other was slimmer and shifted on his feet. Burns shuffled the papers for the fifth time, starting from the front of the stack again.

The larger agent cleared his throat. “Sir?”

Director Burns sighed and frowned at the papers. “It’s a very well done report. Where did you get your information from?” he questioned the larger of the two, Agent Adam Ellis.

“Thank you, sir.” Ellis nodded at the complement. His partner’s eyes flicked between the two men quickly. “We have a contact in the Mission Support Division.”

Burns nodded and switched to another page of the report. “I mean, if this is true, then-”

“Of course it’s true!” The outburst of the other agent surprised the director, though he really should have expected it.

Burns rubbed at his eyes with his thumb and forefinger. “Agent Heyman, please.”

“No, _you_ please.” Heyman jabbed a finger toward Burns and would have taken a step forward if Ellis hadn’t stopped him. “This is a real threat! The conspiracy goes all the way to the top! I can’t believe no one noticed it before. They must have started small, just a few moles here and there, but now they’re all over!” His hands waved animatedly in the air as his speech gained momentum. “I’ve got evidence. Jenny in accounting, Steven, John, Pepe Silvia, even Mary from the mailroom. The _mailroom_! And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.” He leaned heavily on Burns’ desk and dropped his voice to a strained whisper. “I think the director of the FBI might be under the control of none other than the Corpirate.”

“Now-“ Burns began, only to be cut off again.

“I know what you’re going to say,” Heyman continued. “‘Oh, it’s just crazy old Joel, back at his old theories, going too far like always’ but I dare you to deny the undisputed evidence before you! The Director of the FBI is up to something. We can’t be sure if it’s an assassination, a military coup or-”

“JOEL!” Burns stood from his desk abruptly, making the other man quiet. “Let me talk. Please.” He straightened his jacket as he took a moment to compose himself and Heyman stepped back in line with Ellis. “I’m just trying to be cautious. This is a huge accusation and I just want to be absolutely sure we have all of our ducks in line before we move on this. If we don’t, they could get away with everything.”

The two agents looked at each other and back at Burns. “You believe us?” Heyman asked tentatively.

“You’ve done your research and everything rings true. I just need something to hit the nail on the head.”

Ellis glanced at his partner who nodded. “We might have that hammer, sir. We just received these photos from an informant.” He pulled up a photo on his tablet and gravely presented it to the director.

The display was a zoomed in shot of the FBI Director sitting on a park bench. Foliage obscured part of the view, although a second person could be partially seen. The next photo gave a better angle of the second person who was hidden in a trench coat and large hat that obscured his face. Another few photos showed essentially the same thing, with the photographed men talking until a brown envelope was passed to the stranger. The last photo was the kicker In it, Burns could clearly see the face of the Director as well as the stranger. The handlebar moustache of the stranger was clear as well as the monocle and eyepatch. It couldn’t be more clear than if the man had held up a sign.

“The Corpirate,” Burns breathed. “Well, fuck me. This changes everything.”

“Our thoughts exactly, sir. This is apparently the third meeting they’ve had this week. Something’s coming.”

The Director of Intelligence collapsed back into his chair. The evidence was indisputable with the photographs to accompany the records Heyman and Ellis had collected. This was bad. If the Head Director had been corrupted it was impossible to tell how far the infection had spread in the department. “We can’t trust anyone.”

“That’s what I’ve been saying this whole time,” Heyman said, his eyes wide. “It took us forever to decide that we could even trust you.”

“Even then we weren’t really sure,” Ellis continued. “If it wasn’t for the urgency of the situation, we would have screened you for longer.”

“You screened me?” Burns raised an eyebrow. He hadn’t noticed anyone tailing him or any wiretaps, but it wasn’t surprising giving that Agents Heyman and Ellis were the best in the business.

“Of course, sir. We wouldn’t be doing our job if we hadn’t.”

“I guess it’s a good thing I’m clean, then.” The Director smirked. He leaned onto his desk and steepled his fingers. “The question is how we handle this.”

“We can’t talk to anyone on the inside. It’s too dangerous. One slip up and we’re dead.”

Another conspiratorial glance between the agents made Burns frown. “Are you thinking of calling in a special?”

“Well, sort of.” Ellis handed the Director another folder and waited while he flicked through the contents. “I know what you’re going to say,” he said when he saw the look in the man’s eyes. “But hear us out.”

“This is a terrible idea!” Burns shook his head and dropped the folder on the desk. “Why not get Pewdiepie?”

“He’s too high level. It’s hard to know if he’s in on it with how close he’s worked with the FBI in the past.”

“Septic Eye?”

“Overseas.”

“Markiplier. He’s got a good track record.”

Heyman ran a hand over the back of his neck. “Last we heard he went off the grid for a bit. Bought an old van and just started traveling.”

Burns dropped his head into his hands. “So this is seriously the best option you can come up with?”

“We didn’t say it was fantastic-”

“But it is the best option we have,” Ellis concluded. “They’ve been off the grid for a while, they have no connections to the Corpirate, and they can be bought.”

Burns looked down at the various mugshots that had spilled from the folder and shook his head. “I’m going to regret this.”

“We’ll regret it more if we don’t do something.”

A full minute of silence passed before Director Burns looked up. “Okay. You guys are heading this operation. Keep me informed. Anything you learn you tell me immediately. I want it quiet. I want it quick. I want it clean. I want it controlled.”

“Of course,” Ellis agreed. Heyman would have been bouncing in excitement if it was acceptable for an agent to do so.

“And I want in contact with your support tech. What’s his name?”

“Matt Hullum.”

“Right.” He made a mental note to do his own background check on the man. “Now get out of here.”

The agents quickly left the office, leaving Burns to his thoughts. A pit in his stomach was forming and a deep frown permeated his features. The news was bad. He’d had his own suspicions for a while. There had been a few orders handed down that had given Burns pause. Intelligence gathering on people that shouldn’t have been under investigation. Records of classified conversations that were sent to classified people. While Burns was used to a few cases of this every year, the number had been amping up to an absurd number. On one level he was glad he wasn’t being paranoid, but he would have rathered his concerns be unfounded. The agents would have to do a lot of leg work, but Burns had his own role to play. He had to make sure no one caught on. Go about everyday business like the whole nation wasn’t about to explode at the drop of a hat.

He stretched his arms behind his head. "Well, at least if this whole squad thing goes wrong it'll just kill the criminals. Hell, maybe it'll draw out the scumbags in the department. Two birds with one stone."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is my first voyage into RT/AH fanfics, so we will see how this goes. Suddenly got the idea of "What if the Fake AH crew started the way the Suicide Squad did?" Hopefully the plot won't be too out there. Let me know if you think this is a good idea! Thanks for reading! (Also if you think of a better title let me know...) (I have no beta so let me know if there are problems!)


	2. The Unusual Suspects

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With a green light from Director Burns, Agents Heyman and Ellis begin to get the crew together.

Gavin Free laid back on his cot in absolute boredom. The concrete cell offered no distractions whatsoever. The walls were bare aside from a few scratch marks he’d put in that marked the length of his incarceration. Aside from the cot, there was a toilet, small sink, and an even smaller mirror. He’d already spent a few hours shaping his brown hair to perfection trying to kill time. Every day it was the same thing: wake up, do some in house workouts, perfectly coif his hair, then try to kill the last ten hours of the day.

The only item he owned was a single gold coin he'd managed to win in a bet with a guard. Well, that and the horribly drab blue-gray jumpsuit he’d been given to wear, though he was fairly certain he didn’t actually own that. The young man tossed the coin in the air with one hand, absentmindedly catching it as it fell. The gold glinted in the light as it revolved in the air over and over again. With a frown, the brunette flipped the coin as high as he could and held up both his hands.

For a moment, the coin descended at the regular rate. The muscles of his arms tensed and he gritted his teeth. The coin slowed in the air until it was falling at a fraction of the speed. The corner of his mouth quirked up in triumph while he maintained focus on the slow-mo coin. The harder he focused, the slower the coin moved. It was getting easier to control. _Maybe this whole prison thing will work in my favor. Give me time to practice._

A key in the door distracted him and as soon as his concentration broke the coin plummeted straight onto his prominent nose.

“Ah, bollocks!” He sat up straight and rubbed the tender spot on the side of his nose. “Blasted coin is heavier than it looks,” he mumbled in a British accent.

The door swung open and a young guard stepped in. “Let’s go, Free.”

The prisoner stood, storing the coin back in his pocket. “Sure thing, Neal. Just let me make myself presentable.” He took a moment to fix his hair in the mirror before allowing the guard to handcuff and escort him down the hallway. “So, Neal,” he began after a few seconds of silence. “You decide on an answer yet?”

Neal’s dark brown eyes briefly glance at him. “What was the question again?”

“Wot? You don't remember our conversations?”

“It's been a few weeks.”

The Brit sighed in disappointment. “A million dollars, but every time you eat there's a one-in-ten chance there will be a huge, hairy spider in your food.”

“A live spider?”

“Of course a bloody live spider. And a big one. Like the kind you see in Australia.” Gavin tried to demonstrate the size, but it was difficult with his hands cuffed in front of him.

“Uh.” Neal’s brow furrowed. “I don’t know. What if it’s a poisonous spider and bites me?”

“It’s a million dollars, Neal. You can buy an antidote.”

“Yeah, still don’t know about that.”

The pair had stopped at a nondescript door. Gavin thought that the whole interior of the prison could use a make-over. At least a splash of color to accent all the concrete. “What’s behind door number one?”

Instead of answering, Neal opened the door and ushered Gavin inside. The door, leaving Gavin alone with two suited men sitting at a lone table.

Gavin raised his hands in a small wave. “‘Ello, gents. What can I do for you?”

“Mr. Free,” the skinnier man greeted. “Please have a seat. My name is Agent Heyman. This is my partner, Agent Ellis,” the man continued as Gavin slid into the seat across from them.

“CIA? No, not nearly enough sunglasses,” the Brit mused, cutting the agent off. “FBI, then. Or maybe Homeland Security. Wait, are you with the border patrol? Here to deport me? I know I haven’t gotten my green card renewed recently, but I’ve been a bit preoccupied as you can see.” He held up his hands with a cheeky grin.

“Border patrol? What? No. Just, stop.” The man frowned and shook his head. “We aren’t here to deport you. We’re here to talk to you about-”

“It’s about the plane, isn’t it? Listen, I may have had a few too many bevs when I broke onto that military base. I wasn’t exactly thinking clearly and stole that jet on a dare.”

“What is he talking about?” Heyman turned to his partner pleadingly.

“Mr. Free, we aren’t here to talk about your past. . . excursions,” Ellis explained. “We are actually hoping you can help us.”

At that Gavin perked up. “My help?” He gave his cockiest grin. “Now you have my attention.”

The agents’ expressions turned solemn. “What we are about to tell you is national security importance. If you are found to have shared any, and I mean any, of this information, the punishment will be quick and severe.”

“Well I’m not going to be able to bloody tell anyone anything in this place. You’re the first people I’ve seen in months besides Neal. And you can trust Neal. He’s top.”

“We need to have your word, Mr. Free.” Ellis’s eyes bored into Gavin’s. “No one can know.”

“Fine, fine. I swear I won’t tell a soul.”

Ellis slid a photograph across the table. “Do you know this man?”

Gavin leaned forward with a frown. “No. Should I?”

“He's only the most ruthless son of a bitch out there,” the bearded man informed him. “Responsible for countless innocent deaths, at least two terrorist attacks, and had his fingers in starting multiple conflicts across the world. He's a warmonger. The worst out there.” With each account, Heyman added photos to the table. Images of war torn countries, bodies stacked on bodies, and towns burning from destruction. The images made Gavin’s stomach roll uneasily.

“Terrible, isn't it?”

“Well, yeah. The photography is absolute shite. Angles are all wrong, didn't follow the rule of thirds, and overexposed as well.”

“We’re not talking about the photos, Free.” Ellis’s voice was warning in tone.

The prisoner sobered and sighed. “Yes, it’s terrible. But what do you want me to do about it? I don't even know who this man is.”

“We want you to help us take him down.”

Gavin balked and couldn't help but laugh. “You want me to go after that guy? Alone? What the bloody hell are you on about?”

“Not alone,” Ellis assured. “We want to put together a task force. You and a few other criminals-”

“I resent that term.”

“-to take down the Corpirate and those affiliated with him.”

“In return,” Heyman continued. “We will lessen your sentence from forty years to twenty.”

Gavin cocked his head and raised an eyebrow. “That all? Just halve a sentence? From what I understand, I'm going to be risking my life. Seems like I deserve a bit more.”

“You’ll be doing a great service for your country.”

“Not my country,” the Brit said smugly.

The bearded man sighed. “Fine, what do you want?”

“A game system. Gets right boring sitting in that cell all day. If I'm still going to be stuck in here seven more years I want something to do.”

“The deal was twenty years.”

“Oh, I bet you can get it down to seven at least.” He snapped his fingers at a sudden thought. “And gold. I want some gold coins.”

“Coins?” Heyman questioned, flabbergasted.

“Yeah, I’m starting a collection.” He blinked innocently at the agents.

“Fine,” Heyman agreed. “We will get you the game system and your coins, but I'm not guaranteeing anything beyond a resentence of ten years.”

“Deal.” Gavin grinned and reached out a hand to shake on it. “Now when do I get to meet the rest of the team?”

“Soon,” Ellis assured. “We don’t have much time. Be ready to go at any moment.”

“No worries there. I’ve got nothing to pack.” He stood and knocked on the door to get Neal to let him out. “Cheers,” he said in parting.

He waited until they were a good twenty feet from the door before he leaned conspiratorially toward Neal. “You aren’t going to believe what just happened. Those guys in there-“

A loud “Ahem!” from behind him drew his attention to the bearded agent who was standing imperiously by the interview room.

“Oh, uh, right. Sorry. Can’t talk about it. Real hush hush classified stuff.” He shot a thumbs up back at Ellis who simply shook his head in response.

****

“I’m beginning to question the sanity of this mission, Adam,” Heyman said as the pair waited in the observation room for their final line-up.

“Little late for second guessing, isn’t it?” his partner chided. “Besides, the hard part is over. We got them all to agree to help and it didn’t cost nearly as much as I expected.”

“True,” Heyman relented. “Didn’t cost anything at all with Jones. He just asked for us to stop hunting his girl.”

“Certainly helps when they have pressure points.”

A loud beep echoed as the door to the line-up room opened and their six recruits shuffled in. The agents watched through the one-way mirror, scrutinizing each person. There was one woman in the group, Jack Pattillo, a fiery red-head that was taller than all but one of the men. The shortest by far was a young man with purple and orange hair, Jeremy Dooley, who looked anxiously at the taller people around him. The stand-out, however, was the Vagabond who wore a skull mask. The guards had admitted they were too afraid to ask him to remove it. After talking with him alone, the agents could agree.

“I’m going to be honest here,” Heyman said, putting a hand to his chin. “I was hoping they’d look a lot more intimidating all together.”

As they watched, the Englishman with the big nose said something to the curly-haired man, Michael Jones. The latter must not have been too impressed because moments later he launched himself at Gavin with rage filling his eyes. Gavin’s eyes widened in fear and he reflexively held his hands up. Instantly, Michael looked like he was moving through molasses. The rest of the group looked on with bored expressions.

“This is going well.” Ellis ran a hand over his eyes before stepping forward and flicking on the intercom. “Gentlemen,” he said, all business.

“And lady,” Jack chimed in as Gavin lost his concentration and Michael rammed into him at full speed. The pair flailed for a second, Gavin giving gurgled cries while he tried to fend Michael off.

“Will someone get them apart?” Ellis barked.

The final member of the team, a moustached and tattooed man named Geoff Ramsey, stepped forward and gripped each of the younger men by the back of their jumpsuits. He easily pried them apart and held them a few feet from each other. Both of them were dangling a few inches off the ground. Gavin had a split lip and smoke was leaking from Michael’s mouth.

“That’ll cost you another grand,” Geoff announced.

“Wait.” Jeremy perked up. “You’re getting paid?”

“This is going well,” Heyman half-laughed, the strain evident in his voice.

Ellis shot him a withering look as the would-be team continued to argue.

“Will you all _shut up_?” The voice emitted from the black skull of the Vagabond. Instantly, the room fell silent.

“Thank you,” Ellis huffed. “Now. Let’s all act like civilized people. Can you do that for me? Because if you can’t I need to know now. I’d rather have this team a man short than have the whole operation fail because one of you can’t act like an adult. We clear on that? Jones?”

Michael, still literally fuming, grudgingly nodded.

“Good. Now, starting today you are going on a crash course in team bonding. If any of you try to escape or kill anyone, no one will hesitate to put you down. We have snipers at the ready and guards stationed every dozen yards.”

“Seems like a waste to kill us,” Gavin piped up.

“Oh, they won’t kill you. Their orders are to maim. You’ll survive to live out the rest of your long, miserable sentences.” He waited a moment to let his words sink in. “Now, let’s all play nice and go outside.”

The agents watched the men and woman file out the door in strained silence.

“Could have gone worse,” Ellis finally said.

“I don’t see how!” Joel exploded, the stress finally free.

“They didn’t kill each other.”

“They almost did! Did you see Jones?” The thin agent started pacing the small room. “He almost brunt Free to a crisp!”

Ellis leaned back against the wall and crossed his arms. “Yes, but he didn’t. Don’t start freaking out yet. Let’s see how they do first.”

“We have a week to get them working together like a cohesive team!”

A knock on the door drew their attention. A young guard with short dark hair poked his head in, they recognized him as the one who had been escorting Free. “Sorry to bug you, but one of them transformed into an orange and purple snake and is chasing Geoff around while another is trying to ‘accidentally’ burn Gavin.”

Heyman shot Ellis a strained look and half bowed, gesturing him out the door. “After you. Remember, don’t freak out.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for the kudos guys! And for the review Pistachio. Hopefully you guys enjoyed the update. Let me know if there’s somewhere I need to improve. I’m all for helpful criticism. Next chapter will go more into their powers and whatnot. (I have no Beta Reader! Let me know if something is amiss!)


	3. A Bit of Healthy Competition

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Team building goes... well?

It wasn’t that bad. Not to say it _wasn’t_ bad, but it definitely could have been worse. Ellis was going to stand by his words. Even as he watched the six member crew completely fail at the obstacle course for the upteenth time.

“You’re right, Adam, it’s not bad.” Something in Heyman’s voice told Ellis it was definitely terrible.

It had taken a full day to get the crew to not fight over trivial matters, three times as long as Ellis had hoped. In an effort to encourage team building, they had moved on to the obstacle course.

Gavin was making Geoff move at half-speed, giggling to himself as he did so. Michael had tangled himself up in the rope section and he was unsuccessfully trying to burn himself free. An orange-and-purple sloth was making good, though slow, progress across the monkey bars. Jack had left the course completely to chat up a guard who looked absolutely infatuated with her, and the Vagabond, well, the Vagabond had completed the course in record time and was repeatedly throwing a knife into a post with amazing accuracy. Where he got the knife from Ellis wasn’t sure, but he wasn’t about to try to take it away.

“We’re going to need help.” The bearded agent let out a long sigh. “I don't have nearly enough training to whip these guys into shape. We need an army guy. Or a prison warden.” He frowned as Geoff finally broke free of Gavin’s slow-mo and proceeded to try and fart on his face.

“Don't worry, Adam. I realized this was a big mess long ago. I already put a call in and we should have someone here by the end of the day.” Heyman clapped a hand on his partner’s shoulder.

* * *

 

Out on the course, Michael finally freed himself from the ropes and fell to the ground with a loud “FUCK!”

The young man sat up and rubbed a hand through his curly hair where he'd hit his head. _Gonna feel that one in the morning._ He glared up at the now unusable rope ladder and considered burning the rest of it just for good measure.

“Hey, boi. You alright?” The British guy leaned into Michael’s field of vision.

“Fine,” Michael huffed, a few tendrils of smoke curling past his lips. He pushed himself off the ground and frowned at Gavin. “What? You couldn't use your power to slow my fall?”

“Well, I was a bit distracted. What with Geoff and all.” He half-smiled. “Sorry.”

Michael sighed and breathed slowly through his nose. “Don't worry about it. Not your fault.” He unzipped the top of his jumpsuit and tied the arms around his waist, revealing his white wife-beater. The air cooled his skin along with his temper. He turned to the agents creepily watching from the sidelines. “Hey, you fuckers! I'm gonna take a break. ‘Kay? Don't shoot me.” He sarcastically saluted as he headed to the side and sat on the grass next to a discarded jumpsuit. To his dismay, the big-nosed Brit followed him.

“Man, this sucks.” Gavin sighed as he dramatically collapsed on the ground and threw an arm across his eyes. “Do you think it's too late to go back to prison?”

“You're still in prison, dipshit.” He let his arms rest on his knees.

Gavin gave him a lopsided grin. “Guess that's true.”

They lapsed into silence, Michael observing the rest of his supposed team. Long, stiff grass poked into his legs. It didn’t look like it had rained in weeks. What he would have given for some rain. A year in the joint had made him desperate for any sort of outside air. An hour in the sun and he wanted to back inside again.

He didn't know about the rest of them, but he was only in it for the chance to escape. Yes, he had agreed to the gig to protect Lindsay, but if anyone could look out for themselves, it was his girl. It was his job to get back to her. The best way to do that was to understand who all he would be working with.

“Whaddya know about the rest of the crew? I think I’ve heard of the Vagabond before.”

“Yeah.” Gavin sat up, his green eyes staring at the masked man with an intensity Michael hadn’t expected. “He’s a right mingy bastard from what I’ve heard. He usually goes around as an assassin for hire, but from what I hear he just likes killing. Once took out a full beach party because he wanted to see if their blood would make red sand. Barely any legitimate info on him. Impossible to track down. Really surprised they caught him, actually.”

Michael nodded slowly. The information matched most of what he’d heard. He and Lindsay lived a relatively quiet Bonnie and Clyde lifestyle under the radar. Looking into or caring about other criminals wasn’t a pastime of theirs, so if Michael had heard about the Vagabond it had to mean he was a big deal.

“Don't know much about the others, though,” Gavin continued. “There were a few rumors of a super strong guy and his redhead partner attempting to take on the gangs of Los Santos, but that's as much as I can pin on those two. As for animal-man, your guess is as good as mine. Seems young. Probably hasn’t done much.”

“You know, for being an idiot, you are kinda useful for information.”

The Brit beamed in response. “I'll take that as a compliment, Micool.”

An orange cat with a purple stripe down its back joined them. It curled up under the discarded jumpsuit and transformed into Jeremy with a quiet _hap-hap-hap._ A very nude Jeremy.

“That happen every time?” Michael asked as the young man quickly dressed himself.

“The whole naked thing? Yeah. Kind of annoying.” He zipped up the jumpsuit and fluffed his brightly colored hair. “But I've gotten used to it.”

“Seems a bit weird with the whole color thing,” Gavin added, propping himself on his elbow and looking over.

“What you’ve never seen a purple cat, Gav?” Michael snorted.

“That’s how I got caught, actually. Really hard to make a get away as a brightly colored dog with a bag of money in its mouth.”

“Oh, that’s nothing.” Gavin smugly looked at his two new compatriots. “I got caught because I was falling from a building and freaked out so much I stuck myself in slow motion for a full hour. When I finally made it to the ground they were waiting for me with handcuffs.”

“Okay, that's pretty bad. How did you fall off a building?” Jeremy laughed.

“I don't want to talk about it,” he mumbled, his face suddenly turning crimson.

Michael rolled his eyes. “Idiot. You're the one who brought it up.”

Gavin flubbed and sputtered for a second while he tried to think of a way to change the subject. “Well, what's your story then? How'd you end up in here.”

The New Jerseyan smiled and leaned back on the grass. “Oh, it's killer, that's for sure. See, my bird and I had just done this bank job, right? Well, I was causing a distraction while she flew the coup with the money. Blew up a few police cars, did a couple thousand dollars worth of damage, whole nine yards. I was on fire. Literally. Then, all of a sudden, they bring out this fire hose and BAM! I'm soaking wet and can't even get a spark. Then they hit me with a taser and I don't remember much after that.”

For a moment, the two stared open-mouthed at the third. Finally, Gavin spoke. “Sausage and biscuits, boi. Water and electricity? You should be dead!”

“Ah, it wasn’t that bad.” Michael brushed his concern away. “I’m still here.”

Before the conversation could progress any further, a shadow blocked the sun.

“Whatcha talkin’ about over here? Huh?” The mustached man stood over them with his arms crossed. A multitude of tattoos covered his arms under his rolled-up sleeves. “Making escape plans without your good buddy Geoff?”

“We’re just reliving our capture stories, Geoffrey,” Gavin piped up immediately.

The man sat heavily next to the trio. “Picked up for pick-pocketing, right?”

“Dog-catcher, fire-hose, idiot,” Jeremy quickly recounted, pointing to each of them in turn.

“Pfft. Sounds like you’re all idiots.” Jack appeared to sit beside Geoff. She draped an arm around his shoulders. “Though I guess the only reason I got caught was because of this idiot. Just had to stop for the school bus, didn’t you?”

“Listen,” Geoff began, holding up his hands defensively. “I draw the line at kids. I didn’t know it was a get-out-of-school-early day, otherwise I would have waited on the job.”

“A school bus had stopped to let off some kids and Geoff made me stop, which let the cops catch up with us,” Jack explained further. “He even refused to fight back because he didn’t want the kids to get caught in the crossfire.”

“Aw.” Michael grinned at the older man. “Good guy Geoff wouldn’t hurt a fly.”

“Don’t test me, kid,” he warned with a glare. Few people with a mustache that ridiculous looking could appear so menacing. Michael had to admit he was impressed. “I’ve taken shits more dangerous than you.”

A ringing laugh escaped Michael. It was funny, he couldn’t remember the last time he had laughed. Probably not since he’d been split up from Lindsay. He hoped his red-headed better-half was staying out of trouble. _As if_ , he grinned wryly to himself.

“Hey, Jack.” Gavin's voice drew him back into the conversation. “What sort of powers do you have?”

“I'm a good driver.” Jack smiled sweetly with a flick of her short hair.

“That's not a power,” Gavin scoffed.

“I beg to differ. Have you ever tried to drive a getaway car during rush hour traffic in Los Santos?”

Jeremy nodded knowingly. “Yeah, that's a real bitch.”

“Okay, but that's a skill. What’s your _power_? Are you super strong, like Geoff?”

The redhead sighed and relented. “I’m an empath. I can feel and manipulate people’s emotions among other things.”

“What other things?” Jeremy asked.

Jack winked. “A girl has to have some secrets.”

“Wait, wait, wait, wait.” Michael held up his hands and frowned at the woman. “Like a Jedi? Are you a fucking Jedi?”

“No, she’s not a Jedi you dipshit. She’s cooler than a Jedi.” Geoff eyed the younger man as if daring him to question Jack’s uniqueness.

“You know it.” She grinned.

“That's very interesting,” a deep voice said from behind Michael.

“Jesus Christ man!” He scrambled away from the voice, bumping into Gavin who appeared just as surprised. “Don’t sneak up on me like that!”

The Vagabond stared down at him with his empty skull sockets. “My apologies.”

“Moves like a right ghost,” Gavin mumbled. Michael had to agree.

“So is that your power?” Jack asked, cocking her head and peering up at the skull. “Super stealth.”

The skull stared down at her silently for a moment as if in thought. “No.”

The group waited expectantly for a description, but none came from the stoic man standing above them.

“Man of few words,” Geoff finally broke the silence. “I like that. So, Vagabond, we’ve just been sharing our prison stories and it’s your turn. How’d you get caught?”

“I didn’t.”

A snort escaped Michael. “Sure you did. You're in here, aren't you?”

The tall man shrugged. “Well, that's because I turned myself in.”

It took a moment for what the skull had admitted to register with the others, but when it did an eruption of voices drowned out Michael’s own words.

“Bullshit!”

“You're fucking kidding me.”

“Who is this guy?”

“I knew he was crazy.”

All accompanied by Geoff’s raucous laughter.

“Look, they offered a big reward for bringing me in, and I decided to collect.”

“They let you do that?” Gavin asked, mouth agape.

The Vagabond shrugged. “They didn't say anywhere that I couldn't collect on myself. I read the fine print.”

Jack looked at him incredulously. “But why turn yourself in?”

Another shrug. “I was bored. I've never tried to break out of a high security prison so I thought I'd give it a try.”

“Then how come you haven’t broken out yet?” Michael challenged.

“Prison is comfy. They give me everything I want. Good food, TV, books, and, most importantly, quiet.”

A whine emitted from Gavin. “They didn’t give me anything when I got here.”

“Oh, man. This is too good.” Geoff managed to get his laughter under control. “You got bored and decided to collect a bounty on yourself.”

“What else was I supposed to do?”

“Christ, Vagabond, I don't know. Find a new hobby? Like coin collecting?” Gavin shook his head, but there was a smile tugging at his lips.

“Coin collecting,” the tall man scoffed. “What's the danger in that? Now taxidermy might be more up my alley.”

They were still in a debate over the best hobbies when the skinnier, more annoying agent walked over. “If you guys are done with your little tea party, it'd be great for you to get back to work. Thanks.” He smiled tightly at his sarcastic comment. “But no rush, you know, just the fate of the world.”

The whole crew simply stared at Heyman in silence.

“That was an order!”

“Fine, fine,” Geoff grumbled though he didn't move.

“Come on, lads.” Gavin jumped up and stretched his arms. “Let's beat this obstacle course.”

“Someone got his second wind.” Michael grasped Jeremy’s offered hand to help him up.

The trio started to walk away when Geoff called after them. “What, you're not going to wait for us?”

Gavin looked at Michael mischievously. “Well, you’re not exactly lads now are you. Quite a bit older. More like gents.”

“Yeah, old man, why don’t you just hang back and let the more able bodied take care of things.” Michael grinned wickedly.

The mustached man stared at him open-mouthed for a moment as his face turned a shade of red. “Alright, that’s it. You pricks are going down. We’ll show you who the real Specials are. Gents, assemble!” Geoff rocketed to his feet, dragging Jack with him.

“I don’t know if I want to-” the Vagabond started to protest.

“Nope. No getting out. You’re in this deep as dicks.” Geoff’s glare seemed to cow even the assassin. His blue eyes turned back to Michael with fire burning behind them. “Race to finish the course. Lads versus Gents. Whole team has to cross the line. Whoever loses buys the winners a round of drinks.”

“You’re on!” Gavin crowed without conferring with his appointed team. The brunette sprinted toward the course and unsuccessfully tried to vault up the rock wall without climbing it.

Michael shook his head with a sigh as he calmly jogged over to the start of the course. “Great job, dumbass.”

The Brit mumbled something unintelligible as he rubbed his nose sheepishly.

The Gents were already well ahead of them. The Vagabond was standing imperiously on the platform as if he had always been there. Geoff easily threw Jack to the top before scrambling up himself.

“Suck it, nerds!” Geoff laughed as they dropped over the far side.

A deep breath in did little to keep Michael calm as he began scaling the wall. He heard a quiet _hap-hap-hap_ behind him just before an orange and purple blur sped by on its way up the wall. The squirrel turned and look back down at him from the top. “Can’t you turn into something helpful?” Michael huffed.

“Sorry,” Jeremy said, his voice slightly quieter with his smaller form. “I can only do animals my size or smaller.” The squirrel frowned. “Wait, I might have something.”

He disappeared from sight while Michael kept climbing. He had already reached the top by the time a brightly scaled snake-head peeked over the edge.

“See, you didn’t need my help.”

“Maybe not me, but the one who started this mess does.” The pair looked down at the struggling Brit. “Seriously, how did he even accomplish anything on the outside?”

Jeremy slid his tail off the edge and wrapped the top part of himself around a pole at the top. “Am I long enough?”

The curly-haired young man peered down at Gavin who was grimacing at the tail dangling next to his face. “Stop being a little bitch, Gav. Grab the snake.”

“But what if it’s slimey?” the young man whined.

“I am not slimey!” Jeremy called, hurt in his voice.

“Now you hurt his feelings. Say you’re sorry and grab on so we don’t lose.”

Gavin grabbed onto a Jeremy and let out a squawk as the snake wrapped around his upper arm and began pulling him up with ease. “Jesus, J. You’re stronger than you look.”

Once the last member of the Lads was safely on the platform, the five foot long snake curled up on himself and stuck his forked tongue out at Gavin.

“Cheeky.”

“Argue later. Move now,” Michael said shortly. They had ground to make up if they wanted even a chance at beating these guys.

“No worries, boi. We got our secret weapon.” He turned confidently to the coiled snake. “You can just fly us over to the end, right?”

The snake vehemently shook his head.

“He can’t make himself any bigger than he is when he’s human,” Michael quickly explained, already sliding down the pole to the ground.

Gavin frowned at the snake. “Well, that’s bollocks. You’re just a little thing anyway.” When Jeremy opened his mouth threateningly with a hiss, Gavin quickly followed Michael down the pole.

The trio managed to struggle under the barbed wire without hurting themselves, though Gavin tore a large hole in the back of his jumpsuit. Luckily, the Vagabond, for all the mystery his mask achieved, apparently couldn't see very well as he struggled to get through the wire. Geoff and Jack were yelling directions interspersed with curses at their third man, but the cacophony only served to confuse the Vagabond even more.

“Now’s our chance! Let’s go boys!” Jeremy led the charge, shifting into a cat and jumping across the posts of the next section. His balance kept him safely above the mud pit below.

A strange cooing sound followed Michael across the posts, distracting enough to make him almost lose his balance. A quick glance back revealed the culprit, Gavin, holding out his arms like some sort of weird pigeon. “What are you, a bird now?” Michael could feel his annoyance building.

“I’m channeling my inner bird for balance.” Gavin emitted a loud caw-caw as he jumped to the next post. “See? Didn’t fall.”

“I’m gonna kill him,” Michael mumbled to himself. “I am definitely going to murder him.” He reached the far side and turned just in time to see Gavin misstep off the last post and start falling.

“Micooool!” The lanky young man would have face planted into the mud below if his slow motion powers hadn’t kicked in to practically freeze him in mid air. The frightened look on his face was even more ridiculous in slow motion.

Cat-Jeremy sat next to Michael as they both watched the slow descent of the Brit. “Should we help him?”

Michael sighed. “If we don’t, he’ll probably never stop complaining.” He stepped forward and grabbed Gavin’s elbow, attempting to pull him to solid ground. It was like pulling him through quicksand. “God dammit. Stop with the slow-mo already. I’ve got you.” Michael pulled harder, inching Gavin over the lip of the mud pit until, suddenly, the body started moving at full speed. The pair fell to the ground, Gavin landing heavily on Michael. His sharp elbow jammed into Michael’s side.

“Thanks, my boi.” The grin on Gavin’s face disappeared as Michael unceremoniously shoved him off.

“How are you such an idiot? Better question, how have you not killed yourself already?” Michael stood and glared down at the other man.

“Not to interrupt, but how are we supposed to get past this mess?” Jeremy was staring up at the mangled remains of the rope net Michael had burned earlier.

Gavin frowned at the burnt ropes. “Shit, Michael. Did you do this?”

Annoyance was building in Michael. “Yeah. So?” He eyes narrowed at Gavin.

“It’s just that, well, it’s going to be bloody hard to climb now, isn’t it? I don’t think it’ll hold any of our weights. You kind of screwed us over.”

Smoke leaked from Michael’s lips. “Keep talking and I’ll burn the rest of it down.”

The cat twirled himself in a figure eight around Michael’s legs. “Calm down, we can still make it up. We can use the snake technique. We just need a bit of time.”

“I can slow them down!” Gavin immediately turned back to the Gents who had finally dragged the Vagabond out of the wire. “Take that, Jack!” He gleefully laughed as the redhead was slowed to half-speed while she jumped between posts.

Jeremy clawed his way up to the top and _hap-hap_ ed into a snake. His long tail dangled just out of reach, forcing Michael to carefully climb his way up a few feet before latching onto the snake with both hands. Cool scales wrapped around his arms and pulled him upward faster than he could have climbed himself. The platform edge approached quickly and he pulled himself the rest of the way up as Jeremy released him.

“Gav! Let’s go!” A few sparks escaped with Michael’s words.

“Right!” As soon as Gavin turned, Jack returned to normal speed. Geoff followed behind right on her heels while Vagabond simply stepped from post to post like he was walking through a park. Gavin’s head popped over the platform edge, blocking Michael’s view of the Gents.

“Out of the way.” Michael shoved him aside. “It’s Mogar’s time to shine.” A blast of fire shot from Michael’s mouth and incinerated the remains of the net.

“Christ, Michael!” Gavin beat at a small spark that was singeing the platform. “You’re going to burn the whole thing down.”

“Aw, come on! That’s not playing fair!” Geoff’s complaint was drowned out by Michael’s laughter.

“Burn, baby! That’s what you get for tangling me up earlier!” He flipped off the ashes for good measure.

* * *

 

Heyman sat on the ground with his head in his hands.

“You’re going to ruin your suit,” Ellis commented.

“What does it matter. It’s all over at this rate.”

“I think things are getting better.” Ellis watched the turmoil on the obstacle course with a chuckle. “At least now they’re working together. Sort of.”

“Totally great. Totally,” Heyman responded without looking up. “They’re destroying more of the course than they are actually completing.”

“You have to admit it’s nice to see them actually accomplish something with their powers.”

The thinner agent groaned.

Geoff was trying to cajoled the Vagabond into standing on his shoulders to make a human ladder. “When is your guy getting here?”

“Not soon enough,” came the muffled reply.

“Hey, Geoff,” Michael’s voice reached across the field. “Jeremy here will help you out, won’t you Jeremy? Just grab on.”

The screams of the tattooed man echoed along with the laughter of the Lads.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for the continued support! Shout out to MerryLittleKittyFairy, bravelove, and Pistachio for their comments. Hopefully the long chapter makes up for the longish break. I hope to update at least twice a week from now on. Let me know what ya think :) (No beta reader! Alert me to the probs)


	4. Captain's Orders

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Geoff tries to grow his crew, Michael tries not to loose his cool (again), and the agents' secret weapon arrives

Fire still burned in multiple places along the remains of the obstacle course. Dirt and wood littered the ground where sections had been torn up from the ground. In the midst of the mess, the six members of the would-be team were collapsed. Their friendly competition had quickly dissolved into a demolition party. At first, the guards had tried to stop them, but retreated when they realized the Specials weren’t going to hurt themselves. As the Vagabond had pointed out, the agents hadn’t said anything about not destroying the course.

“‘Course I’d take the money,” Michael said shortly from where he leaned against a broken wooden pole. “We eat spiders all the time. Like, they crawl in our mouths while we’re sleeping and shit like that, right? So what’s the difference.”

“It’s a bloody big spider, ya knobhead!” Gavin spluttered. “It’s not just some itsy bitsy thing.” He was reclining above Michael on the part of the pole that had slanted to the ground. “Go on, Jeremy, show him what I’m talking about.”

The young man was back in human form and his jumpsuit. “I am not turning into a spider,” he mumbled against his arm without moving from where he was lying on his stomach.

The nearby Gents listened to the Lads with a layer of scrutiny. Well, Jack and Geoff did. The Vagabond was laying flat on his back, arms at his sides, and staring straight at the sky with his empty sockets. Geoff wasn’t even sure if the man as breathing. _Creepy,_ he shivered.

“What do you think?” Jack asked quietly. They sat side-by-side against a huge tire that had somehow remained intact.

Geoff scratched at the stubble along his cheek with a frown. “Well, they’ve certainly got potential. Course they’re a bunch of fucking idiots.”

The redhead smiled broadly. “You know we’re fucking idiots, too.”

A ringing laugh escaped the man. “They’d fit right in then, wouldn’t they?”

“You guys actually making a crew?” The rumbling voice of the Vagabond reached the pair. “Beyond this, I mean.”

Geoff mulled over his answer a moment. “Thinking about it. Mainly planning on a break-out crew. You want in?”

“Maybe.” The assassin shifted to put his hands behind his head. “What’s in it for me?”

“You get out,” Geoff dryly replied. “That’s all you’d get.”

“Of course, if you stayed on afterwards you’d get a cut of any take we have,” Jack added.

“Interesting.” A few minutes passed while the pair waited for the Vagabond to continue, but the man had fallen silent.

“What’s your read on them, Jackie?” Geoff returned to their conversation.

Her eyes closed and she leaned her head back against the tire, relaxing as she focused. “Michael is easy to read. Anger, rage-“

“Shocking.”

“-but there’s caring underneath all that.”

Geoff watched the volatile young man stand up and push Gavin off his perch. “I’m guessing it’s buried deep down.”

“True.” Jack’s lips twitched slightly. “As for Gavin, he’s energy. Excitement. Positivity.”

“Idiocracy,” he added. “I don’t need to be an empath to know that.”

“That’s not an emotion,” she sighed without cracking an eye.

“Whatever. What about the kid?”

“Happy and excited. There’s an edge of nervousness, but he’s not scared.”

“Good. Can’t work with someone who’s scared to do the dirty work.”

“Says the guy who’s terrified of snakes.”

A shiver ran down Geoff’s spine. “Slithery bastards. How am I supposed to trust something that doesn’t blink?” His eyes trailed to the nearby Vagabond and his voice dropped softer. “Speaking of which, what’s your read on that guy?”

His partner in crime frowned. “I can’t get a read on him.”

“I thought you could read anybody’s emotions. What’s that you were saying the other day? You’re the best there ever was? You could read anybody?”

Jack glared at him and gave him the bird. “Either he has no emotions, or he’s learned how to block out empaths. I should be able to get a read on him if I touch him. It’s a lot easier when there’s skin contact.”

“Well, go on then.” Geoff gestured to the assassin. “Go cop a feel.”

“I’m not going to just touch a skilled assassin. What if he ripped off my arm?”

“Please,” Geoff scoffed. “As if he could do that.”

“You could. Who’s to say he’s not super strong, too?”

The moustached man’s eyes narrowed. “If that’s his power, then he definitely can’t be on the crew. There’s only enough room for one strong-man and that’s me.”

Jack smiled and gently jostled Geoff’s shoulder with her own. “Don’t worry. I’d never let some random guy in a skull mask replace you. Even if he is the best assassin ever.”

A huff escaped Geoff, but there was no malice behind it. If anyone would have his back, it’d be Jack. They’d trusted each other since the very beginning, back before they’d decided to become crime lords. Back when they were kids just trying to survive Los Santos. Those days seemed so long ago now. A lot had changed since then, but not their trust in one another.

“Aw.” Jack leaned her head on Geoff’s shoulder and looked up at him with a sweet smile. “Someone’s feeling sentimental.”

“Shut up.” Geoff pushed her away. “What did I say about reading me?”

“Not my fault you’re an open book. Learn to control your emotions, young padawan.”

The man rolled his eyes and stood up.

“Going to greet the troops?”

“Yep. You stay here and keep an eye out,” he ordered as he dusted off his jumpsuit.

Jack waved him away and settled back with closed eyes, soaking in the warm sun.

The Lads were still arguing over something, but quieted as Geoff approached.

“Have you come to admit defeat?” Michael smugly glared from where he had Gavin in a headlock.

“Ha! As if.” Geoff bit back further argument and smoothed his mustache with a thumb and forefinger. “I’ve come to invite you into an elite business proposition run by me and my associate here.” A quick thumb over his shoulder motioned to Jack. “We are a small crew hoping to expand our horizons with a few fresh faces and believe you three have exactly what we’re looking for.”

A brief moment of silence was broken by Michael. “What the fuck did he just say?”

“I believe he just invited us to join his crew.” Gavin extracted himself from Michael’s hold and cocked his head at Geoff. “Right?”

“Obviously. I was pretty clear on that, right?” he called back to his partner.

“Might tone down the flowery language,” she responded. “They aren’t that smart.”

The Brit started to argue, but Michael cut him off. “No, no. She’s right.”

“What’s in it for us?” Jeremy moved to stand beside his new friends, crossing his arms and looking relatively imposing despite his shorter stature and ridiculous hair.

“Fame, fortune, whatever your heart desires.” Geoff leaned in closer, his blue eyes crinkling mischievously. “Most importantly, a way out of this place.”

“We already have a way out,” Gavin scoffed. “That's the whole point of this venture.”

“Yeah,” Jeremy agreed. “We’re going to need more than that.”

The two Lads seemed set in their demand for more, but the third had fallen quiet. Geoff knew he had him from the frown on his face. _Just a little more pressure._

“I’m just saying,” Geoff continued. “You’re placing your trust in those bumbling FBI agents. How do you know they’re going to uphold their end of the deal?”

“Well,” Gavin spluttered, “we can always just slip away once they let us out to do the job.”

The older man sighed dramatically. “You really are a moron, aren’t you? There’s no way they’re letting us out of here without a babysitter. You wouldn’t make it five feet before they put a bullet in your head.”

“We all just run at once, then,” the Brit continued to argue. Jeremy was looking as contemplative as Michael.

“Sure, we could try that.” Geoff nodded. “Of course, at least one of us will get shot and I’m not willing to stake my life on it not being me. Are you willing to take the chance?” He paused a moment for his words to sink in. “I’ll let you guys think it over.” He started backing up. “No need to make rash decisions, right? Just let me know when you reach a consensus.”

Geoff turned and smugly walked away. He leaned against the tire beside Jack, casting a shadow over her face.

“I think you got them,” she said, cracking an eye and peering up at him. “They are definitely a ball of nerves and doubt.”

“Of course I got them,” Geoff scoffed. “Did you hear that speech? Pure poetry.”

“Yeah. Great job, Shakespeare. Now move. You’re blocking my sun.”

“I’m trying to save you.” The man didn’t move. “You’re a redhead. You burn faster than a whore in church.”

“That is so not the right saying.”

“Incoming,” the rumbling voice of the Vagabond warned. The assassin sat up with his arms resting on his knees.

Geoff followed the skull’s gaze to a new figure, a young man with black hair and tanned skin, approaching the agents.

“This can’t be good.” Geoff squinted at the trio. The new kid was standing with an air of confidence. His black tactical gear gave him away as a soldier of some sort. _Special ops, probably,_ he mused.

“I would say he’s here to arrest us if we weren’t already in supermax.” Jack was staring as well.

“Maybe we’re getting transferred to ubermax.”

After a few minutes, the newcomer broke away from the agents and started picking his way across the destroyed course.

“Shit. Who’s this bozo?” Michael’s angry grumble demanded.

“Another prick in black,” the Brit mumbled. “Probably going to make us do more push-ups or run laps or do math.”

Jack frowned and raised an eyebrow. “Why would they make us do math? What good is that?”

“Well, I don’t know,” Gavin spluttered. “I’ve never fought a supervillain before. Especially with the name Corpirate. Maybe he has something to do with corporations and those have numbers, right?”

A groan escaped Geoff and he covered his face with his hands. “Idiot. Fucking idiot.”

Combat boots crunched against the dirt as the black clad man stepped up to the crew. His dark eyes moved between the members, landing on Geoff last. “I’m Captain Alfredo Diaz. I’ve been charged with whipping you into shape.” His voice wasn’t intimidatingly deep like the Vagabond’s. Instead, it was the assured confidence that sparked a bit of respect from Geoff.

“I thought the agents were supposed to be ‘whipping us into shape’,” Jeremy pointed out.

Geoff didn’t miss the slight eye-roll Alfredo gave. “They decided they needed the extra help.” He glanced around at the destruction. “Looks like they were right.”

The mustached man shot a pointed look at the Lads while directing his statement at Alfredo. “So, you’re like our babysitter. You’re going to follow us around and keep us in line.”

“Essentially. Hopefully I’ll be able to teach you something, too.”

“And you’re the best they have?” Michael pushed himself up from the ground and stalked over to stand just in front of the captain.

Alfredo stood straighter and crossed his arms. “I am.” The pair stared at each other down, neither willing to relent.

“Five bucks on the SWAT guy.” The Vagabond materialized next to Geoff like a ghost. The other man hadn’t even heard the assassin approach.

“Fifty bucks on my boi,” Gavin immediately responded.

The angry pyro looked between the skull and the nose. “What? I’m not even worth a hundred?”

The group quickly dissolved into an argument of worth with Michael’s volume rapidly increasing with each passing second. Jack and Geoff watched the exchange with semi-interest.

“You sure these are the people you want on our crew?”

“I’m beginning to doubt.” Geoff pushed himself off the tire with a groan and raised his hands above his head. “Alright, alright! Everyone calm down. We’re all a bag of dicks barely worth a wad. How ‘bout we hear this captain guy out? ‘Kay? Maybe he’ll have some useful tips that’ll keep us from getting killed.” He placed a strong hand on Michael’s shoulder and guided him back a few feet. “Teach away, Captain. We’re all ears.”

Alfredo’s tense shoulders relaxed ever so slightly now that it appeared there wasn't going to be an outright fight. His dark eyes glanced at the sky before dropping back to the crew. “We’ve lost most of the day, but there's still time for a few drills. Drop and give me twenty.”

“That's terribly cliché,” Gavin scoffed.

Without a blink or glance at the Brit, Alfredo responded, “Then how about you run a few laps.”

“Bullocks on that.”

“I could always call out the dogs for some encouragement.”

Gavin wisely chose not to challenge the captain anymore. Instead, he begrudgingly began a slow jog around the smouldering course.

“Pick up the pace, Free! This is training, not a run in the park!” He turned back toward the other prisoners. “Anyone else care to join him?”

With only a mild amount of grumbling, the crew fell into their push-ups.

* * *

 

Prison food had never tasted better after the long day. Gavin had scarfed his helping down in seconds and begged extra scraps from the Vagabond. The tall man had refused to eat when anyone was looking, preferring to keep the mask in place. They’d been allowed to take a quick shower and change into new jumpsuits. Their _night_ suits as Gavin had called them. With his belly full and no longer feeling disgusting, Gav was ready to relax back in his room with his gold coin until he fell asleep. It didn’t seem that would be the case, however, as the chain gang of Specials was led down a different hallway.

“Until further notice, this is your new barracks,” Alfredo announced as the prisoners were marched into a spacious cell.

_This is more than just spacious,_ Gavin thought to himself. _It’s bloody luxurious._ There was a good sized TV, a wooden coffee table, nice looking couch, armchair, even an area rug that gave a certain sense of class to the room. “Is that a mini fridge?” he voiced.

“Yep.” The masked Vagabond strode to the fridge and pulled out a Diet Coke. He snapped it open and was about to raise his mask for a drink when he paused and looked at those gathered and back at the drink. “This is awkward.”

“There anything good in there?” Geoff marched over and yanked open the door revealing a wall of silver cans.

“Is the whole fridge just Diet Coke?” Jack frowned.

“Of course.” The Vagabond sounded positively smug. “That’s all I drink. And since this is my room, I get to choose what goes in there.”

“Right,” Alfredo said with a knowing grin on his face. “I should have mentioned that this was his room.”

The stunned silence was broken by Michael’s angry “WHAT?! I’ve been living in a shitty crap hole of a cell for a year and you’ve been living like a king here? Why the hell do you get special treatment? Fuck!” He was literally smoking and Gavin was beginning to sweat from the heat radiating off of him.

The imposing man seemed unperturbed by Michael’s colorful outburst. He simply shrugged. “I have a lot of money from turning myself in. A little bit can go a long way in this place.”

The hot-headed young man seethed and seemed about ready to explode. The guards raised their weapons, ready to diffuse the situation by force. The guns weren’t deadly, but they packed enough of a punch to knock you out and bruise you for a month. Gavin still had a blotch on his left rib cage from the one time he had caused trouble.

“Don’t blow your cap in here, you idiot,” Geoff ordered, placing himself between Michael and the gunmen. Despite their never agreeing to join his crew, the man was already treating the Lads like his underlings. “You’ll burn us all up.”

Michael kept grumbling, but he crossed his arms and seemed to calm down enough to stop emitting smoke from his nose and mouth. The guards uneasily lowered their weapons.

“Can I have one?” Jeremy piped up, motioning to the fridge. The simple question encouraged everyone to relax a little more.

“You can have this one if you like. Looks like I won’t be enjoying it.” He handed the younger man the drink and waved an arm. “Make yourselves comfortable.”

Gavin immediately fell onto the couch with a gurgling coo. “It’s been so long since I’ve seen a couch! This is comfier than my bed!”

“Scoot over.” Michael pushed the Brit’s legs to the side so he could sit. “Jeremy, pass me the remote.”

The young man did as he was told before abandoning the half-finished coke on the table and transforming into a cat. He disentangled himself from his clothes and jumped up to curl on top of the couch.

“Hey, just because your an animal doesn’t give you liberty to act like one,” the Vagabond scolded as he slid a coaster under the can.

Alfredo and the guards that had escorted them to the room left after the captain gave a few parting words. “There’s only one bed, so I’ll have the boys drop off some extra pillows and blankets. We begin again at oh-six-hundred hours.”

A unanimous groan rose from the room.

“Do you want me to make it five-hundred?”

More negative grumbles.

“That’s what I thought.” The cell door shut finitely behind the young man, leaving a gap of silence.

“I like him,” Geoff said as he dropped into the armchair. “Wonder if he’d like a career change.”

“You can’t just adopt every kid you see into your gang,” Jack chided.

“I cast a wide net, Jack. Ups my chances of catching something.”

“Sounds like something a purveyor of STD’s would say,” the Vagabond quipped, launching everyone into teasing laughter.

The cell door opened for a moment and a pile of blankets and pillows was unceremoniously shoved inside. Gavin flopped off the couch, landing clumsily on the hard ground and scrambling to grab the best pillow. He was still trying to decide which one he wanted when Jack snatched up a couple pillows and blankets for herself and Geoff.

“You’re a doll,” Geoff yawned from his reclined position as she tossed the goods to him.

The Brit quickly grabbed pillows and blankets. “Don’t worry boi! I’ve got your blankets!” His return journey to the couch was hindered by a blanket catching around his left foot. He floundered for a second, trying unsuccessfully to stop his fall. Instinctively, he stuck out an arm and his powers kicked in.

“Idiot,” Michael snorted. “Why do I feel like we’re going to spend the whole mission trying to keep this guy alive?”

“I wonder he hits the ground with the same level of force,” the skull mused. “Should we wait and see?”

“As much as I’d like to see him suffer some consequences for his actions, you should probably help him up,” Geoff dismissively ordered.

The Vagabond relented and grasped the back of Gavin’s jumpsuit, yanking him upward. The slow mo took a second to stop, but soon the Lad was back on his feet. He shook off the helpful hand immediately and glared at the assassin.

“You were going to let me fall?”

“It was an experiment.” The man shrugged.

“Mingy knobhead,” Gavin mumbled as he gathered his dropped bed supplies and dumped them on the couch.

Michael shoved a pillow behind his head and switched on the TV. A static filled black and white movie played, one Gavin vaguely recognized. Attempts of his friend to change the channel were fruitless. “What the fuck. This sucks.”

“We are in a concrete compound probably fifty feet underground. I’m lucky to get that.” The Vagabond pointed emphatically at the television. “Besides, we’re about to get to the good part. Louis is about to kill the last of his estranged relatives.”

“Of course you would like the murder movie.” Jack shook her head as she moved to the bed. “If no one objects, I’ll be taking the bed. If anyone does object, they can take it up with Geoff.”

The mustached man cracked his knuckles for emphasis.

“I ain’t got a problem,” Michael quickly assured. “I always let the ladies have the best.”

Gavin blinked at Michael. “That’s surprisingly nice of you.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” he demanded with a glare. “You don’t think I can be a gentleman?”

“No! No,” Gav backpedaled. “That’s not what I meant at all. I just meant you don’t seem like the person to be nice like that.”

Before the pyro could say anything else, Geoff yelled at them. “Shut up! Watch the movie or go to sleep. You assholes can flirt all you want tomorrow.”

Quiet snickering from the back of the couch inspired Michael to pummel Jeremy with his pillow. The orange-and-purple cat hissed and barely avoided falling off the back by digging his claws in the couch cushions.

The Lads quieted down as Vagabond turned off the lights. The room was only lit with the flitting light of the television. Gavin settled into the couch, his legs draped over Michael’s. He hadn’t realized how truly tired he was. The movie light was hypnotically calming and the volume was at a low hum that lulled him toward sleep. Geoff somehow folded his tall frame into his armchair with his pillow cuddled in his arms. The Vagabond laid on the ground without any blankets or pillows, but with his mask still on. _That thing must be incredibly sweaty,_ was the last thought Gavin had before he drifted into a deep sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woooow so my original posting plan got a little (lot) thrown off. But I legit have everything mapped out now so should be on schedule from here on out! (fingers crossed...) Hopefully the long chapter made up for it! Thanks for reading! (I don't have a beta-half, so let me know if something is wrong)


	5. Something Wicked This Way Comes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alfredo gets a read on the crew. Elsewhere, things are brewing...

An uneasy feeling woke Jack. She quickly sat up and scanned the room, her hand going instinctively for the nonexistent knife under her pillow. Even after seven months in the clink her muscle memory was as sharp as ever. Her heart calmed down once she realized there was no immediate threat. For a moment, she considered brushing off the feeling and going back to sleep, but she was awake now and there was no fighting it.

The concrete floor was freezing against her bare feet and she took a moment to locate her discarded shoes before wandering over to the sleeping men. Another black and white movie was playing and giving a soft glow to the room. None of the others moved as Jack traced the uneasy feeling to the culprit.

Geoff was his usual sleeping self. He mumbled nonsense sentences from his fetal position on the armchair. Despite not seeing each other for months, they’d fallen back into their usual habits like they’d never parted. They’d bribed guards to deliver notes back and forth while they were separate, but it wasn’t the same. She adjusted his blanket where it had fallen away.

The Vagabond hadn’t moved from his position on the floor. His empty skull eyes were turned toward the television. For a brief moment, Jack tried to get a read on him, but that space of the room was an emotionless void. Jeremy was still in cat form, though he had shifted to sleeping on Gavin’s chest. The Brit was snoring lightly, but there was no concern coming from him. That left only one. Michael twitched in his sleep ever so slightly. Whatever his dream was, it hadn’t reached nightmare setting yet. A breathe was all it took for her to grasp calmness. She trailed her fingers across the young man’s forehead, brushing a few curls away as she did so. Calm leached from her touch into Michael. His face soothed and the anxious vibes dissipated. She liked reading people while they slept; it was like getting a glimpse at the person without the fronts they put on.

“There you are,” she whispered. “No more waking me up, alright?”

“How sweet.” The rumbling voice was barely audible. Jack would have thought she’d imagined it if the skull hadn’t changed from staring at the movie to staring at her.

She quietly settled on the ground near the assassin, her back leaning against the coffee table. “I thought you were asleep.”

“That’s my secret, I never sleep.”

Her eyebrow arched. “Is that your power?”

A deep chuckle echoed from the mask. “No, I just thought it sounded more interesting than saying I have trouble sleeping.”

“I could help, if you like.” Jack offered a hand. “We’ve all had our share of insomnia in our line of work.”

“No, thanks.” Vagabond crossed his arms, keeping his hands hidden.

“Suit yourself.” She retracted her hand and rested her forearms on her knees. “Just trying to be helpful.”

“Oh, I know what you’re doing.” The smirk could be heard clearly through the mask. “I’ve run into empaths before. Skin contact opens the floodgates, right? So no touchy for you.”

“You got me.” A sly smile spread across Jack’s lips. “Can’t blame a girl for trying.”

They lapsed into silence. A woman on screen was sobbing on a staircase in an impressively ornate gown. _No doubt she’s needing rescued from her dreary life._

“Can I ask you a question?” the skull asked, still watching the screen.

“Only if I can ask you one next.”

The man mulled it over a second before continuing. “Why Geoff?”

“He’s a good guy.” Jack shrugged. “Treats his friends better than he treats himself. Who wouldn’t want to work with a guy like that? You thinking about taking him up on his offer?”

“Is that you question?”

“Even if it was, you just asked me another ones.”

“Touché.”

“All I’m saying is that it’s a lot easier to sleep when you have someone watching your back.” She let her words hang in the air for a moment. “Okay, my turn. Why the mask?”

It was the assassin’s turn to shrug. “It’s also my way out. Everyone has something. Video games, books, music. Don’t get me wrong, I like what I do, but sometimes I need to separate myself from the Vagabond and the mask helps.”

Jack nodded slowly. “I get you. Mine’s LEGOs. It’s nice to build something every once in a while instead of destroy.”

“I could see that.”

She hesitated a moment before deciding to push a little. “Are you ever going to take the mask off or tell us your real name? Not that Vagabond isn’t super cool, but it’s a bit of a mouthful.”

He skull shifted for way for a moment. “Not likely. We’ll get this job done and all go our separate ways. I can’t trust someone I can’t keep an eye on.”

“Fair enough.” Jack didn’t hold his reservations against him. Especially not in the world they operated in. He was smart for being so careful.

They didn’t speak again except for snide comments about the stupidity of the heroine of the movie. The credits had just started to roll when the door opened and Alfredo strode in.

“Everybody up! We have a lot of work to do.” His loud voice accompanied with the sudden flipping on of lights caused the four still sleeping to jump.

Gavin sat up ramrod straight, launching cat-Jeremy flying onto Michael. The sudden feline attack sent Michal scrambling in a half-asleep state, tangling himself in the blankets enough to slip off the couch with a _whoomp_ as the air left him. His actions dragged the Brit with him and would have taken Jeremy as well if it hadn’t been for his literal cat reflexes sending him to the back of the couch and safety. Michael’s previous peace disappeared in a second, replaced with the normal burning fury.

“Just like that,” Jack sighed, “my hard work goes up in smoke.”

Vagabond chuckled as he pushed himself up and offered a hand to Jack. His large hands were now concealed with gloves. “Madame.”

“Why, thank you, kind sir,” she replied in a perfect impersonation of the woman from the movie. For a second, she considered sliding her fingers up past the sleeve of his jumpsuit to the bit of exposed skin. It would be so easy to pretend it was an accident. He might not even notice. The notion passed quickly and she released the grip as soon as she was standing.

“Five more minutes,” Geoff mumbled, rolling to hide his face in the back of his chair.

“Don’t worry, I got him.” Jack stopped Alfredo. She approached her friend and pulled him by the elbow.

“Noooo,” the man whined.

“This is the guy who’s supposed to lead our crew?” Michael scoffed.

Jack rolled her eyes and pulled harder. “Come on. Time to get up.” Her friend slowly allowed himself to be pulled to a sitting position and then to his feet. “There ya go.”

“There better be some strong coffee coming my way,” the mustached man grumbled.

The two Lads finally disentangled themselves from the rat’s nest on the floor. Gavin’s hair was stuck in all directions, the most prominent piece plastered to one side of his face. He yawned loudly. “We do get breakfast before going out, right?”

“Depends on how fast you can get moving. Clocks ticking. Your down to five minutes to eat.” Alfredo glanced at his watch to drive the point home.

“Damn.” The Brit frowned. “We best be off then. You decent, Jeremy?”

The youngest member popped up from behind the couch back to his normal self. “Yep!” he informed as he hurriedly zipped his jumpsuit.

The group fell into line naturally-- prison made chain-gangs second nature-- and followed the guards out the door. Jack ended up between Michael and Geoff. She glanced back at the kid with a smile. “How did you sleep?”

Immediately, Michael’s eyes narrowed. “Fine. Why?”

“No reason,” she smiled.

* * *

 

Breakfast was oatmeal. Plain oatmeal. The Vagabond had left the group to eat his breakfast in the bathroom, deciding secrecy was better than sanitary. Jeremy had forced himself to eat the whole bowl despite it tasting like bland garbage. Shapeshifting had gifted him with more sensitive senses which made the taste even worse. The group had wolfed down their meals in the short time they’d been allotted before being hustled back to the training yard.

“Today,” Alfredo said, striding in front of the line-up like a stereotypical drill sergeant. “We will begin with warm-ups and physical workouts to assess how you stack up, followed by weapons, and finally drills. Then we will break for a short lunch and pick up again in the afternoon. All throughout I expect to see team work. No more Lads versus Gents. You are a cohesive unit from now on.” He stopped abruptly and looked at each person in turn. “Don’t push me and we will get along fine.”

“Whatever you say, Sauce.” Jeremy saluted, earning a withering look from Alfredo.

“Two laps down and back. Let’s go.” Alfredo clapped his hands encouragingly. The length to the fence was at least as long as a football field and none of the prisoners looked thrilled.

Before setting out, Jeremy stripped off his jumpsuit and _hap-hap_ ed into a wolf. Purple fur with orange highlights sprouted from follicles. The action was itchy, but thankfully not painful. The bones clicking and rearranging was what left him a little sore, but more of a slept-on-the-wrong-side-of-the-bed sore than oh-God-it-hurts sore. He shook out his fur, scratching at an itchy spot behind his ear before loping after the rest of the pack.

Geoff and Jack stuck close together towards the back of the group. Michael and Gavin rushed ahead, already racing each other and expending any sort of energy they had. Vagabond moved at a steady pace, his arms pumping rhythmically. Jeremy ran up beside him and easily kept pace. The black skull glanced down at him briefly before facing forward again.

“Hey,” Jeremy offered as a conversation starter. The man didn’t respond. “So, how long you been in the clink?”

Another glance from the skull.

“Aw, come on. Don’t ignore me.” A growl crept into his voice.

The man sighed and relented. “Six months.”

“Yikes. I’ve only been in for four. Gavin’s been in the longest, I think. Like a year and a half.” The pair were passing up the panting Brit now. He was bent over with one arm wrapped around his waist and the other braced on his knee. “See ya, Gavin!” Jeremy barked as they left him behind.

Michael wasn’t much farther ahead. He was also taking a break, but at least he was still walking with his arms raised and hands behind his head. “See that, ya dumb fuck? I win,” he yelled back at Gavin.

Vagabond didn’t spare a glance at either of them, simply kept moving forward at his steady pace. The oddly colored wolf matched his speed. They moved in silence aside from Jeremy’s pants. The mask hid the breathing of the Vagabond, though Jeremy suspected it was as even as his stride.

“Isn’t it hard to wear that and run?” Jeremy asked as they rounded the far end of the yard. They turned back, finally giving a clear view of how far ahead they were of the others. Michael was still the closest to them, though he was still a couple dozen yards behind.

“You’re the second person today to try and get me to take this off,” the assassin said. There was no annoyance in his voice, just calculation.

“What a coincidence,” Jeremy said, his ears perking.

The man shook his head. “I’m not taking it off.”

“Hey, you do you, man. I don’t judge.” He cast a glance at Geoff and Jack as they passed each other. Jack met his eyes with a quick smile.

“Nice talking to you. Real riveting stuff. I’ll catch up with you later.” Jeremy slowed and turned to run with the other Gents.

“You get tired of tall, dark, and creepy over there?” The mustached man jerked a thumb Vagabond’s direction.

“Just checking. Seeing how everyone’s doing.”

“That's sweet of you. Now, what do you want?” Her voice instantly became more demanding mid-sentence.

The wolf’s paws tripped slightly. “What makes you think I want something?”

The woman smiled at Jeremy knowingly. “No one wants nothing, sweetheart.”

“If you got somethin’ to say, spit it out,” Geoff huffed. “Only a few things I hate more than running, and one is dealing with people who don’t say what’s on their fucking mind.” Despite the harsh words, there was no malice behind them.

Jeremy hesitated a moment before admitting his thoughts. “I was wondering if you were serious about letting me join the crew.”

“Why the fuck wouldn’t I be serious?” Geoff scoffed. “You think I just ask everyone willy nilly?”

“Well,” Jack began before being cut off.

“Shut up.”

“But,” Jeremy pressed. “Michael and Gavin can do really cool shit and all I can do is become really weird looking animals. Not even super helpful animals like an elephant or a shark.” The wolf pouted, his ears and tail drooping.

Geoff slowed to a stop, the other two following suit after a few steps. “Jesus, you might be a bigger idiot than Gavin.”

Fingers scratched at a spot behind Jeremy’s ears and he leaned into the touch. The trouble filling his mind receded, replaced with trust and confidence.

“Even with your weird colors you can do some pretty sweet ass stuff. Just imagine using an adorable puppy distracting guards or a mouse sneaking into a building and letting us in. You can’t tell me that’s not helpful.”

“Plus,” Jack said, giving the odd wolf one last scratch. “I think the colors are adorable.”

A big pink tongue lolled out of Jeremy’s mouth to one side. He grinned up at Jack happily.

“Keep it moving!” a shout called from behind them.

The trio picked up their jog again.

“That mean you’re ready to sign on?” Geoff asked. “Spots are filling up fast, but I can find a spot for you and your friends.”

“I’ll ask around,” Jeremy assured. After so long working on his own, he wanted nothing more than to join a crew. He’d been on his own for a while. Even parents can only take so much ridicule before they have to give up. He didn’t blame them, not really. Why begrudge people for doing what any normal human would do? To their credit, they didn’t leave him with nothing. They tried to set him up in a Special school and gave him enough money for at least a start at a new life once he got out. He lasted less than a year at that school. For all the shiny exterior, it was Hell inside. He ran away and started on his own as best he could. Lot of good he’d done, considering how he’d ended up in the prison only a few years later.

The wolf dropped back until he was loping next to a very exhausted Brit.

“‘Ello, Jeremy,” Gavin gasped. “Fancy seeing you here.”

“How ya doin’, Gav?” Jeremy chuckled.

“Couldn’t be better,” he grumbled. “What’s on your mind?”

“I was wondering if you had any thoughts on the alliance Geoff had proposed.”

“You mean joining his crew once all this is over?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, bloody Hell, I thought that was decided already.” He cupped a hand to his mouth. “Oi! Micool! We’re joining up with the Gents after this, yeah?”

“Duh. Wasn’t that already decided?” the angry young man yelled back.

“Lil J here just wanted to make sure.”

Jeremy glared at Gavin with narrowed eyes. “What’d you call me?”

“Little J. Or Lil J if you prefer. I personally like the second one better because the little is as small as you are.” He grinned cheekily.

Jeremy felt like he should have been offended, but all he could do was roll his eyes and move on. _Not like the name will stick, anyway._

“Pick up the pace, Free,” Alfredo ordered from the starting point.

“Cheeky bastard,” Gavin mumbled under his breath. The pair rounded the far corner and started heading back. The Vagabond was far ahead, already passing Alfredo for his second lap.

Jeremy gave a little shake and started picking up speed.

“Show off,” Gavin yelled as he was left in the dust.

Jeremy snickered with a glance over his shoulder. His stride quickly caught him up to the pair of Gents. “Looks like we’re in!” he called as he sped past. He heard Jack’s ringing laugh as he swiftly approached Michael.

“On your left!” he barked.

“Oh, come on! No fair!” Michael cried. He made a valiant attempt to keep up with the wolf, but fell by the wayside.

His claws dug into the dirt as he rounded Alfredo, pivoting his body with only a bit of a slide as he took off again. The extra exertion was starting to drain him. Facts about wolves ran through his head unbidden, things he had learned from television and late nights in libraries trying to find the perfect animal to use on an attempted heist.

He reached the Vagabond halfway to the turn.

“Nope.” The man started sprinting immediately.

The wolf was panting heavily now. Shapeshifting gave him a few advantages, but being cooped up for months with no real exercise had greatly reduced his sprinting time. He slowed slightly, trying to regain a bit of energy without falling too far behind.

As they approached the final turn, Jeremy picked up speed and tried to pass him. Unfortunately, his paws slid out from under him and he slammed into the wall, like an uncoordinated puppy on a wood floor.

The skull laughed and moved faster. “You got nothin’ on me, wolfy!”

A deep growl rumbled from Jeremy’s throat. He pushed himself harder, gaining again. They kept together for the last stretch, both of them practically falling across the invisible finish line.

“Good job, boys,” Alfredo said with a smirk. “You burnt all of your energy before we even started actual training.”

Jeremy would have growled if he had the energy. All he could do at the moment was collapse on his side and pant. Vagabond laid beside him, also breathing heavily. The wolf managed to raise his head slightly to look back at the others. Michael was halfway back, Gavin was barely at the far end.

“Not bad, kid.” Vagabond had an arm across the eyes of his skull, blocking out the slowly lightening sky.

Jeremy’s tail thumped a few times against the ground.

* * *

 

“Shit.” Director Burns looked again at the information he’d just received from Hullum. “Fuck. Shit fuck.” He grabbed his phone and dialed his agents, drumming his fingers impatiently on his desk.

“Ellis,” the gruff voice answered.

“You secure?” Burns demanded, dispensing with the pleasantries. He spoke quietly and quickly, his eyes darting around his room. The office was checked for bugs daily. He had restricted entry to his office to only essentials that he trusted, but he was still paranoid someone was listening in. _God, Hullum and Heyman are rubbing off on me._

“One sec.” There was shuffling and Burns could faintly hear Ellis getting his partners attention. A door shut and then he was back. “We’re clear.”

“We’re far from clear.” Burns looked back down at the report. “There’s been major movement. More sightings of the Corpirate, hits on warehouses that are too systematic to be random. Weapons, vehicles, military supplies. All missing over the last few days. Worse yet, they aren’t _reappearing_. Which means-“

“That whoever is taking them is gearing up for something big,” Ellis finished.

“Exactly.” Burns ran a hand over his face. “We’re out of time.”

“Out of time?!” Heyman’s voice was loud despite his distance from the phone. “They’ve only been training for two days!”

A frown permeated the director’s features. “As much as I’d love to give your criminals a full year to get all buddy-buddy, we don’t have the time. You suggested this idea because you thought they could handle it and I agreed because we are running out of time and options. Well, time’s up. So either you kiss your butt good-bye or you get your Special little group on the next plane out of no man's land to the city.”

There was a moment of silence on the other end. “We will touchdown tonight.”

“Wise choice. I’ll expect to see you at oh-eight-hundred. We’ll meet at the old warehouse on fourth. Make sure you’re not followed.”

“Yes, sir.”

Burns ended the call and sagged back in his chair. The next call he had to make wasn’t going to go as well. Or as short. But it was a necessary sacrifice to get a bit more information. He took a deep breath and sighed as he dialed the number. It rang two times before Hullum picked up. “Tell me what you got,” Burns requested, physically bracing for the onslaught of information that was about to hit him.

* * *

 

Despite all their shortcomings, Alfredo was pleasantly surprised to find that most of the convicts were decent with weapons. He’d had to pull a few strings to get permission to give the convicts actual guns, but he’d eventually gotten his way with extra safety measures in place, namely only allowing one prisoner up at a time and Alfredo always having his own gun ready to take them out if something happened. Thankfully, no one had given him any trouble.

Jeremy needed the most work, but he was a fast learner and soon was aiming well enough to cause some real harm. Jack and Geoff were reasonably proficient, though it was obvious they were self-taught. How they held the guns and reloaded was a telltale sign. The pyro was barely trained at all, and though he shot his weapons with gusto, it was mostly a spray-and-pray hit instead of actually accurate. Gavin managed to hurt himself using anything stronger than a handgun, but he assured everyone it was just because he was rusty. As for the Vagabond, it wasn’t shocking he was able to disassemble, reassemble, and accurately hit the targets with any type of weapon Alfredo threw at him. Knives had proven to be his favorite.

“Bloody Hell,” Gavin breathed as the knife thunked into the head of the target fifty feet away.

Alfredo had to agree.

“Can you teach me how to do that?” Gav asked the masked man hopefully.

He shrugged his large shoulders. “Sure.”

The look of pure happiness on the young man even made Michael smile.

Alfredo rolled his eyes and stepped over to a box of paintball guns, tossing one to Jack. “Get a weapon and we will start the drill. You’ll be working as a unit to eliminate the targets who will be played by volunteer guards. I think most of them are just really looking forward to shooting you. Because of that, you should put on protective gear.” Another box offered thick coveralls, jackets, and masks. No one argued before putting on all the extras, though Vagabond chose to keep his skull mask.

The group trekked to the course where Alfredo passed out earpieces. He waited for them to put them in before giving his final instructions. “The goal of this exercise is to see how well you work together. Listen to each other, take out the targets, and secure the area. I’ll give you support and try to help you get through this. If you get hit anywhere critical, you’re dead and you will exit the area immediately with your arms raised.”

“Piece of cake,” Michael scoffed. “You guys just stand back and I’ll burn the whole thing down. We’ll be done in, like, sixty seconds.”

“No!” Alfredo quickly stepped between Michael and the course. “No burning. No destroying. No killing the volunteers. No powers. I want to see what you can accomplish on your own.”

“Fine,” the pyro mumbled.

“I’ll keep ‘em in line. Don’t you worry your pretty little head.” Geoff raised his weapon and clapped the young captain on the shoulder. “Let’s go, boys!” He led the charge forward, the rest following with varying levels of excitement.

Alfredo climbed an exterior wall of the course to get a better vantage point. The group was clumsily moving through the area, Geoff giving vague hand signals that only Jack seemed to understand. Jeremy and Gavin were trying, though their over the top sneaking was only causing them to snicker lously, giving away their position. Michael and Vagabond were unimpressed and followed the other four.

His gaze drifted to the “enemies” littered throughout the area. “Okay, guys, there’s a tango around this next corner.”

“What’d he say? My earpiece fell out,” Gavin whispered. There was jostling on the line as he shoved the bud back into place.

“I said watch out for the-” Alfredo winced as the Brit was hit with a paintball in his arm.

He squawked and instantly fell into the fetal position on the ground. “I’ve been hit!”

“Get back here, idiot!” Michael ordered. “It’s just a flesh wound.”

Vagabond leaned around the wall and fired off two quick shots, both of them finding their mark in the shooter’s chest.

“He’s down,” Alfredo confirmed. “Next one is fifty feet away. If you take the next right and-”

“This way,” Geoff ordered, ignoring Alfredo. “Jack and I will take the roundabout way and cut him off.”

The captain ran a hand over his face. “That’s not going to work. There’s-”

Another squawk from Gavin when he got hit by another paintball.

“How did that even happen? There’s no one near you guys.”

Giggling from Michael gave him his answer.

“No shooting each other,” Alfredo groaned. _There’s no way this is going to work._ He gave up trying to help, deciding quiet was better than losing his temper for the moment. The six prisoners managed to take out all of the tangos, though they lost everyone but Michael along the way from stupid mistakes and team kills.

“Woohoo! You go, boi!” Gavin cheered.

“Don’t celebrate too much. You’re dead.” Alfredo hopped down from his perch and strode over to the group. His calm and cool demeanor was being challenged with each passing second.

“Speaking of which, can I get some ice?” Jack asked, rubbing the yellow splotch on her lower back. “I think I bruised a kidney.”

“I bruised everything.” Gavin sadly looked down at his chest. Two blue spots had hit his stomach and one green over his left collar bone, not to mention the spot on his upper right arm. “I’m going to have bruises everywhere.”

“That’s why you need to pay attention and listen to me.” Alfredo sighed and looked between the six. “Get back to the beginning and do it again. We will do this until you do it perfectly, so pay attention to me.”

They all returned to the start, Alfredo settling back on his perch. He gave the location of the first tango and was relieved when they followed his directions. They were just moving on to the next target when Alfredo noticed the approaching suit clad figures. He immediately jumped down and jogged over to meet the agents. Worry built up in him when he read the expression on their faces. “What’s wrong?” he asked as soon as they were close enough.

Ellis jutted a chin at the course, ignoring the question. “How are the expendable doing?”

Alfredo ran a hand over the back of his neck. “Give me another month and we might have something.”

“But how are they now?”

“One of them survived the first drill with only minor injuries. There were two team kills, and I’m not convinced they were on accident. On the plus side, they’re listening a bit better.” On que, a rally of yells erupted from the course.

“That doesn’t sound promising,” Heyman commented.

The trio watched the crew stumble out of the course, shooting behind them wildly as paint peppered their clothes. The mustached man immediately located Alfredo and stalked toward him, tossing the paintball gun to the ground.

“Alright, asshole. We were waiting for you to give us the details because you got pissy when we didn’t listen last time. But you never showed up to the fucking party!”

“I thought you guys had it under control.” Alfredo smiled innocently.

“You little piece of shit. What kind of shitty, half-assed, cock-sucker of a captain are you? You can’t just leave your guys behind like that!” Geoff took a sudden swing at Alfredo faster than any onlooker could react.

The tattooed knuckles sailed where Alfredo’s face had been half-a-second before. The captain grabbed the fist and used the momentum to spin the man around and pushed him back toward the others before he had time to react. Geoff stumbled forward and was caught on the shoulders by Vagabond.

“Feel better?” Alfredo asked as Geoff straightened.

“Yeah,” Geoff said, instantly back to his usual self though he was giving Alfredo an odd look. “Yeah, we’re good.”

“Good. Go get ready for another run.” Alfredo waited until the group had gone from ear shot before turning back to the worried looking agents. “Don’t stress. They’re good guys. I would have reacted the same way.”

“The timeline has moved up,” Ellis informed. “We have to move out tonight.”

“What?”

“Director Burns just informed us.” Heyman focused past Alfredo’s shoulder.

“They aren’t ready. Not even _close_ to ready.”

“You don’t think we didn’t tell him that?” The thinner agent crossed his arms. “Unfortunately, our wishes don’t count for much.”

“I know it’s not ideal, but we have our orders.” That was as close to an apology as Ellis was going to give. “And, let’s be real. In the grand scheme of things, these are the most expendable people we have. Even if they fail, they’ll draw out the Corpirate enough for us to make our own move.”

Alfredo’s jaw tightened, but he nodded. “Right. I’ll get them ready.”

“Plane will be here in three hours.” Ellis clapped him on the shoulder before the pair walked away.

Alfredo took a deep breath and let it out slowly. The group was waiting for him at the start of the course. Jack was staring him down. She met his eyes and frowned slightly as he approached.

“Change of plans. You guys need to hit the showers and change clothes. We leave in three hours.”

“Funny, I thought we had a week to train,” Vagabond commented.

“Looks like we passed with flying colors. I’ll take the credit. It’s my incredible leading skills.” Geoff smoothed his mustache with his thumb and forefinger.

“Kinda sucks we don’t get one more run at those fucks.” Michael gestured at the course. “We definitely could have taken them all out easy.”

The crew was taking the news much better than the professionals had. Whether it was because they had nothing to lose or were just incredibly stupid, Alfredo could’ve say. Either way, the six headed for the building like it was any other day, dropping their paintball guns at his feet.

Jack paused briefly and gave Alfredo a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry. We’re used to learning on the fly.” She turned back and joined Geoff who had stopped to wait for her.

“I hope so,” Alfredo mumbled to himself. _It’s not just your life on the line._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aye! So we are going to get into it now. Who's ready to actually see this dysfunctional group in action? I planned out everything else and it looks like the whole thing will be about 13 chapters. Let me know what you liked, disliked, want more of, or don't understand. Thanks for the kudos and the comments!


	6. Sugar, We're Going Down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some things happen, some other things happen, and, surprisingly, something else occurs. Gavin didn't remember anything about being cold and wet when he agreed to the job.

A little red light blinked under the skin of Gavin’s left forearm where the small device had been implanted. He gingerly pressed the area and winced. “I’m going to get a bruise,” he whined.

“We’re all gonna get bruises, shithead.” Michael glared at his own arm before turning his ire on Alfredo. “What gives, Fredo? Our word not good enough for ya?”

“It doesn’t matter what I think.” The captain didn’t look up from his tablet. “The ones in charge gave the order. It was either this or each of you have a specific guard assigned to hug your ass the whole mission.”

“I’ll take the electric doohickey,” Geoff said after mulling it over. “Though I’d rather not get zapped or my arm blown off.”

“Then all you have to do is stay within one-hundred yards of me.”

Gavin frowned as he gave one last sad look at his arm before pulling his sleeve back down. The plane jostled a bit and the young man gripped tighter to his seat. “Couldn’t they have at least sent a civilian plane? One with actual chairs and a cocktail service?” Another bout of turbulence sent him bumping into Michael, who shrugged him off.

“Where are we going, anyhow?” the angry young man demanded.

“I swear if he says classified I’m going to clock him,” Geoff warned.

“Classified,” Alfredo smirked. “Kidding!” He laughed as the tattooed man started to stand. “I’m kidding. We’re going to Achievement City. Our sources tracked one of the Corpirate’s men there before he disappeared.”

“The man or your source?” Gavin could hear the raised eyebrow in the Vagabond’s question. The black mask cocked to one side as it stared Alfredo down.

“Both,” the captain admitted.

“Comforting,” Jack smiled. She brushed her short red hair behind her ear after yet another sudden drop of the plane. “Who the Hell’s driving this? They’re doing absolutely terrible.” A flash of light briefly lit the small windows and a rumble of thunder accompanied her words.

“I’ll tell them to tone down the storm.” Alfredo made his way to the cockpit and slipped inside.

“Strange to see him cracking jokes after all that ordering us around,” Gavin mentioned. His gaze fell on Jeremy who was sitting across from him. The kid looked sick with his hands white-knuckled and clutching at his harness. He was the only one of the whole group to be strapped in, now that Gavin thought about it. “Jeremy, are you scared?”

The Lad looked at him with wide, chestnut eyes. “No.” He shifted slightly, forcing his hands to his lap were they curled into fists.

“Aw, Lil J, we won’t let anything bad happen to you. Just stick near us and we’ll keep all the big bads far away.”

“I’m not scared of bad guys!” Jeremy argued. He deflated a little and mumbled the rest of his words. “I’m just not a fan of heights.” Another rumble shook the plane and inspired his hands to return to his harness.

“Wait.” Michael leaned forward and grinned mischievously. “Is that why you didn’t turn into a bird during the obstacle course? You’re fucking afraid of flying?” His loud laughter filled the plane.

“I guess it’s a good thing he’s not as tall as Vagabond, otherwise he’d be afraid to stand.” Geoff nudged the merc with his elbow.

Suddenly, the plane took a downward turn, sending everyone but Jeremy scrambling to find something to hold onto. Even the Vagabond lost his cool for a moment as he braced against the side of the plane.

“What the fuck was that?!” Michael demanded.

“This can’t be good,” Geoff sighed, his tired eyes looking toward the front of the aircraft.

Alfredo’s shout from the cockpit confirmed the man’s suspicions. “Anyone know how to pilot a plane? Because we might be in trouble.”

Gavin stood at the same time as Jack and both of them stumbled to the front of the plane. They braced in the open door and stared open mouthed at the co-pilot who was leaking blood from his head. The pilot’s body was shoved to the side on the ground where a slowly widening puddle of blood was forming. The Brit’s stomach did an uncomfortable flip.

“What the fuck?” Jack asked, her eyes snapping to Alfredo who was trying to level the plane out.

“Sniper from somewhere. Shot both pilots and sent a couple rounds through the instruments.” He took a moment to point at the floor of the plane where two small pinpricks of light betrayed the entry points the bullets that had killed the pilots. Both had passed through the poor bastards’ heads and exited through the ceiling. A few sparks from the instrument panel showed where the other bullets had hit. “Perfect angles.”

“No one could shoot like that.” Jack shook her head incredulously. “Not in this storm, especially.”

“I know someone who could,” Gavin mumbled under his breath.

She managed to avoid the blood as she traded places with Alfredo. “Go back and make sure everyone has their parachutes on and is strapped in. We might be ditching.” She quickly began checking the indicators and adjusting the rudders. “Gav, you know how to fly?”

“Yeah.”

“Then get in the co-pilot’s seat.”

“But there’s a dead guy in the co-pilot’s seat,” he whined.

“We don’t have time for this! Move the body, get in the seat.”

Gavin groaned, but did as he was told, trying to follow Jack’s path through the blood. His step faltered, however, landing his left foot squarely in the puddle. The sticky liquid tugged at his shoe when he pulled it up. “God dammit.”

“Focus, Gavin.”

He did as he was told, unclipping the body and pushing until it slid to the floor. He grimaced when he saw the soaked back of the chair, but sat down anyway and slipped on the headset.

“Don’t forget to buckle.” Jack smirked sideways at him as her voice crackled through the headphones. “Do you have a reading on the altimeter?”

“No. The hands are just spinning around like mad.” Gavin experimentally tapped the cracked glass with no results. His eyes fell to another very important button that made him even more concerned.

“That’s what I thought. We’ll have to wing it,” Jack chuckled at her own pun. “But I’ve done this before. Once we clear these clouds we’ll have a good idea of where we are.”

“Uh, Jack,” Gavin tried to interject.

“I can set it down on a freeway if needed. Did it before, Geoff was screaming the whole way down though he won’t admit it-”

“Jack! We have a problem.”

She turned to him with a raised eyebrow. “Besides two dead pilots and a crashing plane?”

He pointed to the landing gear controls that were sparking from the blown off switch. “I think the landing gear is a bit important.”

“Well,” Jack paused, searching for the right word. “Son of a bitch.”

“My sentiments exactly.”

“Alright, new plan. Everyone bails out.” The plane lowered a bit through the clouds and Jack had to react quickly to avoid hitting the skyscraper that appeared in front of them.

Gavin let out a gurgled scream and clutched at the armrests. From the body of the plane, the shouts of the others could be heard. Michael’s string of profanity was most clear.

“Okay, too low for parachutes,” Jack said as she righted the plane again. “New plan. We ditch in that river over there.”

“What if the sniper’s after us?”

The redhead continued in angling the plane toward the water. “More reason to stick with the plane. It’ll take time for whoever it is to get to us and we’ll be clearer targets if we just float down from the sky.”

“Fair point. Plus, we can’t get too far away from Fredo or we’ll go all blood rain on the city.” Gavin leaned over the side of his chair and shouted back to the crew. “Hang on to something! We’re going in for a water landing!”

“We’re fucking doing WHAT?!”

“They’re good to go,” Gavin informed Jack.

The pair worked quickly. While Jack adjusted the flaps and slowed the plane as slow as she dared without stalling. Gavin emptied the fuel reserves as soon as they were over water, hoping that the empty tanks would give them a few extra minutes of buoyancy. The plane leveled and they dropped toward the water. Rain splattered against the windshield, making the view difficult. Jack gripped the yoke tightly as she gently guided it down.

“Hey, could you try and calm down a bit? You’re literally making me nervous,” she said with a tight lipped smile.

He took a deep breath and tried to calm his hammering heart.

The grey water stretched out in front of them, pocked with raindrops. It seemed to be taking an agonizingly long time to impact, but Jack maintained a steady trajectory as she grimly watched her instruments.

“What’s the status on the-” Geoff’s question was cut off as they impacted the water.

The plane shuddered as it skid across the surface. Jack somehow managed to hold the plane steady as it bucked wildly against her hands. Gavin gritted his teeth and closed his eyes until the movement stopped. Slowly, he cracked an eye, relieved to see that he was still alive. Soft rain patterned against the plane in the sudden calm. He looked at Jack who gave him a smile.

“Easy.” She took a deep breath before unbuckling and standing. Water was leaking into the cockpit from the bullet holes and already had a thin covering that sloshed with her steps.

Gavin followed her out of the cockpit, happy to see that everyone was still alive.

“Let’s give it up for our very own Captain Sully, everyone. Truly an inspiration to us all.” Geoff pulled his friend into a quick, tight hug.

The lack of bright hair made Gavin momentarily concerned until he noticed the tuft of orange and purple fur sticking out of the Vagabond’s collar. “Is that a little Jeremy?”

The masked man looked down and unzipped the top of his jumpsuit to reveal a terrified looking squirrel clutching to his undershirt.

The squirrel cracked open an eye and looked around at the others. He instantly fluffed his tail and clambered up to Vagabond’s shoulder. “Now do you see why I don’t like heights?”

A metal creaking noise accompanied Alfredo popping open the door to the plane. “Let’s get going. We don’t want to be here if the sniper shows up.”

“I still don’t believe that some fucker from the ground shot out both our pilots and brought our plane down.” Michael shook his head. “No way. Even then, how would someone have known we were coming?”

The group moved to the door and one-by-one slipped into the water. They were in the middle of the large river, which made for a safe landing, but left a very long and cold swim in front of them.

“How’s your freestyle?” Alfredo asked, pushing his wet black hair back from his face.

“Wait! I got this.” Jeremy jumped out over the water from his perch on top of the Vagabond’s head. “Hap-hap-hap!” He disappeared into the water with a small splash and reappeared as a strange looking dolphin.

Gavin laughed as Jeremy briefly pushed himself out of the water with his strong tail. “It’s just like Free Willy!”

“Free Willy’s an orca, you idiot,” Jeremy corrected indignantly from where he floated. “I’m a common dolphin.”

“Yeah,” Michael agreed. “How the fuck do you confuse Free Willy and Flipper?”

“I’m not. . . You know what, we don’t have time for this.” The dolphin sighed and sunk back lower in the water. “I can pull one of you at a time.”

“Ladies first.” Geoff pushed Jack forward.

She held onto Jeremy as he sped her across the water.

“As for the rest of you, we should start swimming.”

“We really could start swimming. Make everything a little easier on Jeremy and speed up the whole process,” the Vagabond pointed out.

“Yeah,” Gavin admitted. “But he’s so excited to be helping. I don’t want to step on his little toes.”

“You just don’t want to swim yourself.” Michael smirked.

Gavin smiled cheekily from where he was holding himself up by the wing of the plane. “That as well.”

“While saving energy is an admirable goal,” the Vagabond countered, “we really don’t want to be present when the authorities show up. Not to mention the plane is sinking at an alarming rate and i don’t want to be pulled under with it.”

Geoff sighed dramatically and glared at the skull. “Why do you have to make sense?” He glanced out to the shore and back at the rest of the crew. “Alright, let’s go.”

“Seriously?” Gavin whined.

“Yes, seriously. Get your butt in gear.” The tattooed man led the way, chanting as he went. “Cold, cold, cold.”

“After you,” Michael said, narrowing his eyes at Gavin when he sensed the latter’s hesitation.

“Maybe I’ll just wait here for Jeremy. It won’t be much faster and- GAH!” he squawked when Michael forcibly shoved him under the water. The cold rushed up his nose and into his mouth, making his teeth hurt. He struggled to the surface, sputtering when his head broke through. “You nearly drowned me, Michael!”

“Yeah, yeah. Cry me a river.” The pyro began swimming.

“Tosser.” Gavin grumbled as he started toward the shore. The frigid water was already making his extremities numb. He made it a dozen or so yards before he stopped to check his progress. The current had started to take him downstream without his realizing it. Not too far off track, but enough to make his heart do a little flip. Dolphin-Jeremy was pulling Geoff to safety.

“Keep moving!” Alfredo had allowed himself to drift a bit downstream as well as he moved toward the shore.

Gavin gritted his teeth and adjusted to swim more against the current. Swimming had never been his strong suit. In fact, most physical activity wasn’t his strong suit and he was tiring rapidly.

Something smooth touched his fingertips and he frantically jerked to the side, images of mutant river monsters flooding his brain. He coughed out the water he breathed in when he saw the orange and purple porpoise. “Jesus, Jeremy!”

“Need a lift?” Jeremy’s voice half-whistled. He waited until Gavin was firmly holding his dorsal fin before towing him toward shore. The water sped past with each stroke of Jeremy’s strong tail and soon Gavin could feel the river bed dragging at his shoes.

Gavin released his hold and half-swam, half-walked through the shallows until he reached the bank. He stumbled up the embankment and collapsed on the ground near where Jack and Geoff were huddled. The day had seemed warm enough before he had gone for the impromptu swim, but now he was shivering.

“You okay there, Gavin?” Vagabond exited the water with more grace than Gavin.

“Cold.” He folded in on himself and glared at the laughing mercenary. Gavin would have thrown back some sass about the mask, but he couldn’t muster the energy.

“Holy fuckballs.” Michael made his way up the embankment. He breathed in his hands, a few red sparks flying from his mouth. “That was annoying.”

A sudden bout of energy inspired Gavin and he stood, pulling Michael into a hug. As expected, the young man was markedly warmer than the environment.

“Get off,” Michael growled, trying to shove the taller Lad off.

“But, Micool,” Gavin cooed, refusing to budge. “You’re so warm.”

“Hey, why don’t you start a fire for us? Then we can all warm up a little,” Geoff suggested.

“No,” Alfredo said as he exited the water. “We aren’t staying here. We need to get moving.”

Jeremy trotted up from the water in dog form. He shook fervently, sending cold water droplets everywhere.

“Oh, come on.” Michael glared at the dog who sheepishly lowered his head.

The group stood and began walking toward town. They stuck close together, mainly so they could all enjoy at least a little of the heat radiating from Michael. Approaching sirens inspired them to detour into an alley until the emergency vehicles sped past. The storm had calmed down to a steady drizzle, the thunder far away.

“Wish I could see their faces when they try to figure out what happened there.” Jack smiled.

“It’s certainly going to keep them busy for a while, though we should get off the streets as soon as we can.” Alfredo glanced at his watch and tapped a few buttons on it. “There’s a safe house nearby that we can hole up in for the night.”

“No to be that guy,” Jeremy interjected. “But is there any way we could get some new clothes? I lost my luggage.”

A sudden thought hit Gavin and he frantically checked his pockets until he found his coin, a sigh escaping his lips. “Not to mention we’re going to get sicker than dogs if we stay in these wet clothes,” he pointed out, twirling the coin briefly before tucking it away again. “No offense, Jeremy.”

“None taken.”

Alfredo mulled it over for a moment. “I guess you're right, but we have to be fast.”

“Shopping montage!” Vagabond’s sudden exclamation caught everyone off guard, causing them to dissolve into laughter.

* * *

The options of clothes were less than optimal, but they were definitely better than the water-logged jumpsuits. Geoff meandered through the store, absentmindedly picking up and putting down different items. The rest of the crew were looking as well, their feet squelching along the floor. Jeremy, still a dog, was dragging a basket along with his teeth and gingerly tossing possible choices inside. The poor store owner had been confused and concerned when they had shown up right as he was closing for the night, but after a few words from Jack he’d allowed them inside.

Finally, Geoff found something that was in his wheelhouse. “Oh, fuck yes.” He held up the suit jacket and grinned to himself. “Perfect.”

The Gent quickly gathered the other pieces and disappeared into a changing room. He took a moment to dry himself off a little bit with an extra T-shirt he’d grabbed before slipping into the new clothes. The fit wasn’t perfect. The sleeves of the jacket were a little short and the white dress shirt poked out. He rolled the sleeves to subvert the problem, happy with how the adjusted look showed off his tats. The black bow tie added an element of refinement. He took a moment to twirl his mustache and smooth it into a classier look before exiting to find new shoes, abandoning his old ones in the room with the discarded jumpsuit.

Jack was making her own decisions about footwear and smiled at him as he joined her. “What do you think?” She held up her leg, showing off the six-inch heels.

“Sexy,” Geoff admitted. “But I wouldn’t call them practically for what we’re about to do.”

“Fair point,” she sighed, switching to a pair of white sneakers. Geoff followed suit with his choice.

“Well, aren’t you two quite the eccentric pair.” Michael smirked as he approached.

Geoff looked Jack up and down, taking in her Hawaiian short sleeved shirt paired with blue-and-white striped shorts. Her unique style was of no surprise to him, but he could see where it would throw someone who’d never witnessed it before. “No idea what you’re talking about.”

Michael laughed and found his own pair of shoes. The brown leather jacket he wore displayed a grey wolf head snarling with bright yellow eyes and _Lonewolf_ scrawled across the bottom. “Pretty sweet, right?” He grinned widely as he looked back at the pair.

“Cliche would be my turn of phrase.” Jack fluffed her drying hair, a few specks of water flying off. “You insult my look, I insult yours.”

Gavin was trying on sunglasses out the counter. His outfit was a light blue dress shirt over jeans. He’d somehow managed to find a pair of yellow converse to accent his look. “Which do you think?” he asked, switching between two sunglasses. “I’m thinking these.” He put on the gold pair and nodded at his reflection. “Yeah, that’s top.”

“You do know it’s going to be night by the time we get out of here,” Michael pointed out.

“Well, it’s not going to stay night, now, is it?”

“Hey, Gav, throw me a pair of those.” Jeremy stepped into their line of sight and all four froze. The kid was wearing a bright orange blazer, purple shirt, and bright yellow pants. To top it all off, he wore a tan cowboy hat. It was the most offensive color palate Geoff had ever seen.

“What. The. Fuck.” Michael was so shocked he was almost speechless, a feat in and of itself.

Jack erupted into laughter, arms wrapped around her middle. “Oh my fucking God. What is he wearing? Is this a joke? It’s got to be a joke.”

Unperturbed, Jeremy caught the aviators Gavin tossed him and slipped them on, shooting duel thumbs up. “Rimmy Tim is back, baby!”

“What the bloody hell is a Rimmy Tim?”

“More importantly, why does it sound like a sex act I don’t know about?” Geoff tried to keep his face straight.

“That’s my criminal name. Jeremy doesn’t exactly inspire fear.”

“And Rimmy Tim does? Rimmy fucking Tim.” Michael ran a hand over his face.

“Like yours is any better.”

“Hell yeah it is.” Michael’s voice dropped a few octaves. “Mogar is ready. He will burn you bitches to fucking ash.”

Geoff rolled his eyes. “Yeah, terrifying.”

“Oh yeah? What’s yours, then?” Michael challenged.

Jack shook her head. “We usually don’t use codenames.”

“But if we had to,” Geoff added. “We’d be the King and Queen of Los Santos.”

“Real original.” Michael threw a shoe at Gavin who was now picking over jewelry. “What about you? Let me guess, big nose?”

Gavin frowned and placed a hand over his heart. “That was hurtful, Michael. If you must know it was Gavino.”

“You used your real name and just put an O after it? That’s just lazy." Michael rolled his eyes.

"And stupid,” the Vagabond interjected as he joined the group, slipping on a pair of black leather gloves. His matching jacket with blue and silver accents complemented his black skull mask, driving home the mercenary vision he projected. Geoff hadn’t thought he could look scarier, but he’d been wrong. “Your name is supposed to strike fear, not give away your identity.”

“Speaking of which, what’s your real name?” Gavin squinted at the skull. "Probably something crazy. Like Francisco."

The large man crossed his arms and shook his head. “No. And don't ask.”

“You guys ready?” Alfredo stepped out wearing a simple grey T-shirt and jeans. A gun was tucked into his waistband at the small of his back. He took one look at the collection of outfits and sighed loudly. “Inconspicuous. That's what I asked you to go for. Gavin, put the jewelry back.” He handed the owner a few bills, mumbling that he could keep the change.

The Brit put back most of the jewelry, but Geoff noticed him slyly pocket a gold necklace. He was starting to like the kid more and more. The group filed out with a few half-waves and thanks to the owner, who watched them leave with an overall confused expression.

The sky had cleared from the rain, the few clouds remaining lazily drifting in front of the three-quarter moon. They walk quickly through the city, Geoff appreciating the tall buildings. It wasn’t Los Santos, but it was better than the underground prison they’d been trapped in. The night life was just beginning to emerge. A few loud dance clubs and more than a few bars beckoned him, but the sore spot on his arm reminded him that he was on the clock.

“Few more blocks and we’ll be there. Take a left down this alley.”

“You mean the alley that’s dark as dicks?” Geoff asked, a frown permeating his features. “Yeah, I see nothing wrong with that idea.”

Alfredo sighed through his nose and shrugged. “We either take this shortcut or we add another fifteen minutes to the walk in order to stick to the main roads.”

“Screw that. Shortcut it is.” Gavin stretched his hands above his head and led the way, walking backwards with the ridiculous glasses perched on his head. “Anyone else ridiculously tired? I could sleep for a week after that swim. After dinner, of course. I'm starving.”

They had gone about fifteen feet when Jack stiffened next to Geoff, grabbing his hand. A sudden rush of unease seeped into him from the contact. He followed her line of sight to a hooded figure walking toward them. Anyone would have thought he was a homeless man, but there was something about his walk that seemed a little off. He saw the glint of the gun just as Jack yelled out, “Gavin!”

Alfredo’s gun was already trained on the stranger though Geoff didn’t remember seeing him draw it. Unfortunately, the British idiot’s head was in the way of a clean shot.

The kid’s eyes widened and he started to turn, instinctively moving his hands to freeze the attacker. Ironically, he was moving too slow.

A gunshot rang out.

The attacker tumbled backwards, stone dead with a bullet hole between his eyes.

“Biscuits and sausage.” Gavin felt his torso, checking for a bullet wound. Michael ran up and looked him over as well, dragging him back to the group when he was satisfied the Lad wasn't bleeding. Gav's pale complexion nervously smiled at Alfredo. “Thanks for that.”

Fredo frowned. “That wasn’t me.” His dark eyes shifted to the rooftops surrounding them.

Everyone followed his gaze, searching for whoever had just saved the Lad. Nothing gave away a position in the quiet night. The distant sounds of night life could be heard a few blocks away.

Vagabond cleared his throat, drawing their attention back to the alley in front of them. A new figure had appeared. It was clad in a trench coat and stood in such a way that his entire figure was shrouded in black.

“Who are you?” Alfredo demanded, raising his weapon again.

The figure chuckled, a low and whispy sound that Geoff would have thought he’d imagined if Jack hadn’t shivered next to him. A dozen or so men entered the alley next to the mystery figure and another set cut off the way the crew had come. They were dressed similarly to the dead body now occupying the alley.

“Oh good,” Vagabond helpfully supplied. “I was hoping for a fight.”

“Not to be a party pooper,” Geoff said, easing into a fighting stance. “But I feel like we might be outnumbered.”

A gesture from the figure sent a ripple through the shadows along the alley. Shapes began to form, tearing themselves from the ground and walls and stretching to grotesque forms.

“I’m gonna have to agree with Geoff,” Jeremy said. “I think we’re about to be fucked up the ass.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh snap. It's a cliff-hanger. So many questions, so little time. Who's they mystery person? And the other mystery person? Will the crew ever learn the true identity of the Vagabond? Will they ever get something to eat? Tune in next time. As usual, let me know if something is wrong. I'm editing this half-asleep and I'm sure I missed something.
> 
> Also, I'm glad Gavin and Meg are okay. Love them both.


	7. First Blood

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first fight. Will they be unscathed? Will they figure out who people are? Will the Vagabond finally get a chance to kill someone?

Everything was strangely quiet.The crew stood in a circle, anxiously glancing between their attackers. The slowly advancing shadow fucks made Michael’s skin crawl. They were opposites unto themselves, seeming both transparent and incredibly dense at the same time. Their feet, or whatever it was that they were walking on, sunk into the ground with each step, like the shadows were trying to return to their normal dimension. The men at either end of the alley were holding their ground, waiting for an order or to see how the small group would react. They were trapped. _We are royally fucked and we barely started._

“Okay,” Alfredo said lowly. “Everyone listen. There’s a side alley at two o’clock. It could be our option to not be surrounded. Michael, I want you--”

The rest of his instructions were obscured by a feral laugh from Vagabond, who launched himself toward the shadows.

“Vagabond!” Alfredo barked. “Wait!” Manic laughing echoed back to them in response. “God dammit.”

The mercenary closed the distance between himself and the closest shadow, throwing a punch at what almost looked like a head. His fist passed through the creature harmlessly, at least, harmless to the shadow. Vagabond cried out in a mixture of pain and anger, jerking his hand back and stumbling backward. “Fuck! That fucking burns!”

Laughter from the end of the alley drew their attention to the coated figure. “I think you’ll find my shadow’s touch a little cold,” the man called, his voice lilting. The longer Michael stared at him, the less solid he seemed. His shape wavered around the edges, making Michael’s eyes start swimming. “Since you’re dead either way, I’ll let you choose. Would you rather die by my men or the shadows? Bullets or cold?” The men raised their guns and waited for a signal.

“Move back!” Alfredo ordered.

“Nah, I can take him.”

Michael threw his hands up in the air. “Jesus Christ, this is going well.”

“Get your ass back here!”

“You’re just wasting time talking!” The man pulled a knife from his boot that he expertly flipped in his uninjured hand. “So keep spouting orders if you want, but I prefer the doing.”

“Wait! Where the hell’d he get a knife?” Gavin squawked. “How come I didn’t get a knife?”

Vagabond’s weapon spun through the air, cut through a shadow without any effect, and found purchase in an enemy’s arm. The man yelped and dropped his gun with a curse.

“Oops,” the merc mumbled, backing up as the shadow continued to advance.

The shadow reached out, lengthening its arm to a grotesque shape. It would have grabbed Ryan if Alfredo hadn’t appeared out of nowhere to pull him out of the way. The shadow briefly brushed the captain’s right shoulder before the pair were fully out of reach.

“Get to the alley!” Alfredo yelled through the pain.

Michael didn’t hesitate before rushing the alley. Gunfire began from either end as the group dashed. He didn’t dare stop to look back until the brick walls protected him. By some miracle, he wasn’t shot dead or even injured. His eyes fell on the entrance and his face split in a grin when he saw the bullets moving at a sluggish pace. “Atta boy, Gavvy!”

His boi flashed quick smile over his shoulder as Vagabond and Alfredo ducked under his outstretched arms. “Everyone clear?” Gav asked.

“One sec,” Jack answered. She and Geoff moved a dumpster to block most of the alley and give cover.

“Take your time, just watching my death slowly approach from either side.” His words were deceptively calm.

Michael joined the others behind the dumpster and peered around the side. “Get your ass over here!”

The Brit threw himself backwards with a twist that landed him prone on the ground. He pressed himself into the wet ground and covered his head with his arms as released bullets ricochet over him. When there was a slight break in the onslaught, the young man scrambled in a stooped run for the makeshift cover, squawking when Geoff roughly jerked him behind it.

“Woo! What a way to start the night.” Michael looked over the top briefly. “Looks like we have some company joining us.” He ducked back down as a volley of bullets struck the container.

“How many?” Alfredo grimaced as he massaged his injured shoulder.

Michael raised an eyebrow at the captain. “Didn’t think to ask with all the bullets flying at my face.”

Alfredo immediately turned to Gavin. “Can you give me some cover?”

“Sure thing.”

The two popped up, Gavin instantly slow-mo-ing and Alfredo firing off precise shots with his left hand. Unfortunately, his bullets froze along with the enemies’. “What the hell, Gavin?”

“Wot?”

“Why are you freezing my bullets?”

“I don’t really have a choice now, do I? It’s all or nothing.”

“Well, that's an unfortunate development,” Vagabond chided. “What good are you if you're going to hinder us as well?”

“If you’d rather get shot, be my guest,” Gavin snapped.

“Well, it’s only a matter of time at this rate,” Vagabond pointed out. “I do so love watching my death slowly approach.”

“Shut the _FUCK UP_!” Alfredo yelled. Any semblance of cool control he'd been maintaining dissolved and he whipped his glare to the mercenary. “Your the one who got us into this! If you had waited and listened to me we could have come up with a better plan than try to punch the shadow and get us all shot at! So shut the fuck up and listen to me so we can fucking survive this! FUCK!” His voice cracked on the final curse.

There was a second of silence from the group tinted only by the rat-a-tat of incessant gunfire and confused yells from the enemies. Finally, the Vagabond laughed. “Well, alright then. You're in charge.”

“Thank you.” Alfredo huffed out his last bit of anger just as a sniper shot rang out. The whole crew jumped to see what had happened. One of the shooters was lying dead and a few had changed their trajectory of fire to the rooftops.

“Looks like we have a guardian angel,” Jack commented.

“Not sure that’s what you’d call him,” Gavin mumbled low enough that Michael thought he’d imagined it. “If it’s alright with everyone, I’m going to let the bullets go again,” he said slightly louder. A bead of sweat dripped down his temple.

Everyone ducked back as Jeremy _hap-hap_ ed into a rat and slipped under the dumpster to get a look. “I got some good news and some bad news,” he loudly squeaked. “Good news is the sniper’s putting a dent in the gunmen.”

“What’s the bad news?”

“Our order from Shadows-R-Us just came in.”

“Put me in coach,” Michael said, bounding on the balls of his feet. “I’m ready.”

A smile tugged at Alfredo’s lips. “Alright, let’s see if fire has any effect. You good to cover, Gav?”

“Give me a sec,” Gavin breathlessly answered. “I haven’t had to work this hard in a long time.” He flipped his golden sunglasses down and shot a smile at the group. “Ready when you are.”

A wicked grin broke across the pyro’s face as he shrugged off his jacket and tossed it aside. “Alright, you fuckers. Now you’ll learn what Mogar can really do.” He felt the heat burning in his chest and stretching into his limbs as he stood. The shadows were moving quicker than he remembered. He took a deep breath and let loose a fiery inferno that enveloped the closest creature. He moved his attack along, hitting as many as he could. The shadows let out a high pitched noise, like air being let out of a balloon, and crumpled in on themselves. Gunfire started and Gavin quickly slowed everything. The last bit of fire was frozen along with the bullets, undulating and twisting around itself. A few drops of liquid fire fell from his lips and singed his t-shirt as he dropped behind cover.

“Dude! That was awesome!” Jeremy’s pointed face peaked out from under the dumpster. “They’re a mess out there.”

“Captain Sauce, I’m not trying to subvert or ruin or stick a dick in your orders, but I’m going to go kick some heads in.” Before anyone could argue, the strongman vaulted over the dumpster. He cracked his knuckles as he approached the scrambling men. “Hey! Dickheads! Who wants some?” His tattooed fist connected with a man’s face, snapping his head back at an unnatural angle. “Woo! That felt good.” He tossed back a gun that Jack caught in one hand.

The ginger flowed seamlessly from the catch to shooting. She casually walked forward, mowing down anyone who attempted to raise a gun to her. For a moment, her smirk reminded Michael of his Lindsay and his heart twinged.

“I’m I allowed to play now?” Vagabond asked politely, his empty skull eyes boring into Alfredo.

The captain nodded. “Michael, keep any shadows off of them.”

Michael followed the Vagabond into the fray. The mercenary grabbed a knife from one of the bodies Geoff tossed to the side and went to work cutting the nearest person’s throat. Bright blood sprayed out, speckling the black mask as the man laughed deeply.

Michael found his own joy in sending small breaths of fire at the feet of the still standing men and watching them frantically try to avoid it. “That’s right. Dance, bitches, dance!” He cackled and kept working toward the entrance of the side alley. A shadow stuck it’s strange semi-head into view and Michael sent a blast at it. “Take that, you cunt!” he yelled gleefully as the creature retreated.

A gunman took aim at him, but was quickly taken out by the roof sniper. Another’s bullet was frozen by Gavin who’d emerged from hiding to lend his services. Jeremy, in dog form, latched onto a man’s arm. Geoff threw a guy back at Jack who clotheslined him before shooting. Alfredo used hand-to-hand combat against someone else, flipping the guy to the ground and double-tapping him in the head.

“Shit!” Gavin’s gasp drew Michael’s attention. His hand grasped his upper arm where blood leaked between his fingers. “I really liked this shirt.”

The distraction was long enough for a shadow to get close enough to touch Michael’s back. The searing cold easily cut through his thin t-shirt. “Cocksucker!” Michael spun around and blasted the thing away.

The shadowy figure of the trenchcoat man himself stepped into view at the end of the alley. His features were still indistinguishable, making Michael’s stomach flip. It wasn’t nearly dark enough to hide the man’s features that well. As he watched, the sniper took a potshot. The bullet left a hole where it passed through the man’s head, but it closed within seconds. He didn’t even react to the shot, just raised a hand and drew another five monsters from the ground.

“We need to take that guy out,” Alfredo unhelpfully informed.

“Take him out? Did you see that guy?” Geoff pointed in the general direction of the shadowman. “He took a sniper shot to the head like it was nothing!”

“Then let’s try fire,” the captain suggested shortly.

“Did someone say burn this fucker to the ground?” He sent a blast toward the man, but there were too many shadows between them. Before he could try again, more shadows popped up to take their place. Michael breathed deeply and blew into his hand, feeling the tickle of fire over his tongue. He manipulated the fire into a ball, never leaving it still enough to burn his skin. Once it was fairly stable, he wound back with one arm. “There’s the wind up, and here’s the pitch!” The fireball arched over a few shadows toward the man.

“Wow! That’s actually pretty cool,” Jack said. “But you have no ability to aim,” she added when the ball splattered uselessly a few yards past the target. “Like, that was amazingly bad. Almost impressively.”

“Alright, let’s see you cough up a fireball next time.” Michael’s cheeks burned as he repeated the process, dodging the few shadows that were getting close to him. He spared a few seconds to kill them before launching his second fireball. That one missed as well.

“Dear God, man!” The Vagabond came up next to Michael and held out his gloved hand. “Give it to me.”

Michael gave the man a look. “You want me to put fire in your hand? Legit fire? You know this stuff’s hot, right?”

“We don’t have time for this.” He wiggled his fingers impatiently.

“Whatever.” Michael made the ball and passed it over.

The mask quickly threw it, shaking his smoking fingers as they watched the fireball speed toward its target. The shadowman wasn’t even paying attention, probably confident after the previous attempts, and the fireball struck him straight in the chest.

The figure staggered in surprise, a smoldering hole extending from the wound. He fell to his knees as he burned from the inside out. He remained silent, not giving even a sign of pain. His shadows dissolved back into the ground just as silently.

Everyone had paused to watch the leader fall, but now the remaining enemies fought desperately. Gavin stopped a bullet aimed for Michael, but a second struck the Vagabond. The man gave a quiet huff as the air left him and he crumpled to the ground. The sniper took out one shooter and Alfredo did the other. The remaining men were killed by Jack and Geoff.

Michael crouched next to the fallen merc and put pressure on the chest wound despite knowing that there was little hope. “Come on, man.”

Jeremy appeared next him. “Shit.” His nose wrinkled and he whined. “That’s a lot of blood.”

“He’ll be fine,” Michael said, his jaw clenched. “Right? A little bullet isn’t going to take the Vagabond out.” There was no movement under Michael’s hands. No breathing, no heartbeat. He slowly sat back.

Jack knelt and touched his wrist. She shook her head slowly. “He’s gone.”

“I-I didn’t-- I’m sorry. I didn’t see the other guy. I…” Gavin’s ramblings drifted off. The blood on his arm had traveled all the way to his wrist.

Alfredo ran a hand through his short black hair. “We need to go,” he said. “More might be on their way, especially if their man doesn’t report in.”

“We can’t leave him,” Jeremy argued. For being a ridiculously colored German shepherd with blood around his mouth, he looked pretty pitiful as he gently pawed at the dead man’s hand.

“I can carry him,” Geoff offered. “I won’t like it, but I can do it.”

Alfredo nodded slowly. “Leave his mask on,” he said, voicing what seemed to be a collective decision.

“Aw, how sentimental. I was beginning to think you guys didn’t like me or something.” The Vagabond pushed himself into a sitting position and looked around at the stunned crew. “What’d I miss?”

“JESUS H CHRIST!” Gavin jumped back behind Geoff who looked equally as horrified.

Alfredo aimed his gun at the skull with wide eyes, like he half expected the man to start looking for brains. “What the fuck man?”

“Yeah, I’m going to second that,” Michael said, much calmer than his hammering heart. “You were fucking dead.”

Jeremy was much less concerned with the semantics. He launched himself at the man and feverishly licked the mask. “Vaggy! You’re alive!”

The merc held the dog away with one hand. “What the hell’d you just call me?”

“Vaggy.” Jeremy stepped back with his tail wagging.

“No. Nope. I’m not being called Vaggy.” He shuddered as he pushed himself to his feet.

“Aw, Vaggy’s kind of cute,” Jack gushed.

Michael gave a shit-eating grin. “Unless you give us a better name, that’s what it’s going to be.”

Geoff held up his hands. “Are just going to blow past the fact this guy just _came back from the fucking dead_?”

“Come on, Geoff. That’s my power. It’s not that hard to get.” The Vagabond straightened his jacket.

“That’s right cool, Vaggy!” Gavin exclaimed, stepping out from behind the strongman.

“STOP CALLING ME VAGGY!”

A noise from a fire escape made everyone’s head snap to the back off the alley. Those who had guns instantly raised them at the thin figure that dropped to the ground. He held up his hands when he noticed the weapons. “Woah, calm down. I come in peace. Let’s all just chill.” He slowly stepped forward, his face hidden by a purple hoodie and an obnoxiously pink sniper rifle slung across his back.

“Who the fuck are you?” Michael demanded.

“What he said,” Alfredo agreed.

“The one who just saved your fucking lives.” The young man waved a hand as light glinted off his glasses. “Hey, Gav.”

“Ray!” The Brit practically skipped forward and they shared a strange handshake. “I thought you were dead!”

The newcomer sighed. “Dude, I literally told you I just wanted to do my own thing.”

“Still, I thought I’d never see you again.” Gavin put his uninjured arm around his apparent friend. “Guys, this is Ray. We used to work together back in the day.”

“Hey.” Ray nodded. “Puerto Rican at your service.”

“Ray, this is Geoff, Jack, Fredo, Micool, Lil J, and Vaggy.”

The mercenary put his head in his hands. “For fuck’s sake! It’s Ryan, alright? Vagabond or Ryan. Not Vaggy. Jesus Christ.”

There was a moment of silence as the crew tried to digest the sudden turn of events.

“Not gonna lie, it took a lot less time to wear him down than I thought it would,” Jeremy said, cocking his head to one side.

“I expected him to last at least a day,” Gavin agreed. “Bit sad it wasn’t something cooler than Ryan.”

“Sorry to disappoint.” Vagabond AKA Ryan’s voice dripped with venom.

Gav laughed before turning to his friend again. “Now, Ray, would you mind bloody explaining why you shot our plane down?”

“That was you?” Geoff asked, his voice cracking. He marched over and grabbed Ray by the front of his hoodie as everyone voiced their own disbelief and anger. “You’re the one who almost killed us?” He shook the smaller man enough to make the hood fall from his head. “I should snap your skinny little neck right now.”

Despite the threat, the young man seemed unphased and simply looked over at his friend with annoyance. “Really, Gavin? You bring that up now?”

“Is there a better time?”

“Maybe when I’m not surrounded by the people who were on the plane.”

“On the contrary,” Alfredo said. “I think this is the perfect time. I’d also like to know why you were following us.”

“Look.” Ray put out his hands in a placating way. “It was just a job. I had no idea who was on the plane. I saw it go down, followed it to finish the job, saw Gavin, and figured he’d gotten his big nose in trouble again. I followed because I figured whoever had hired me probably had others on stand-by. Turns out I was right. That Shadles was no joke. You’re lucky I was here to give cover while your fire-guy got close. So, you’re welcome.”

“We can trust him,” Gavin piped up when the captain still didn’t look convinced. “He’s saved my life more than a few times.”

A snort escaped Michael. “See, that doesn’t surprise me.”

Ray’s dark eyes didn’t waver as he met Geoff’s blue ones. “If I really wanted to kill you, I would have already.”

Geoff sized him up and held him out to Jack. “If that’s all true, you won’t object to a little test, will you?”

“What kind of test is this?” Ray asked. “Because if there’s any butt stuff I’m going to have to ask you to buy me dinner first.”

Jack reached out and touched the back of his hand. “He’s fine,” she said after a moment. “Nothing I’m concerned about.”

Geoff set him back down and dusted off his shoulders. “If Jack says you’re cool, you’re okay in my book.”

“So, what was that?” Ray asked as he adjusted the rifle on his back. “Mind reading or some shit?”

“Nah,” Michael said. “She’s an empath. Knows all those deep down feelings.” He wiggled his fingers to either side of his head.

Ray’s eyebrows arched over his glasses. “Too spoopy.”

The captain finally slipped his gun back into his waistband and began searching the surrounding bodies. He tossed a handgun to Geoff and motioned for everyone to do the same. “We need to get out of here. Gather what you can and we’ll find somewhere to lay low for the night.”

The crew quickly did as they were told. Looting the bodies didn’t take long between all eight of them. Jeremy took a break to change into his ridiculous outfit again. He handed Michael’s jacket to him.

“Check it.” Michael held up a partially melted gun with a grin. “This guy was fucking roasted.” He tossed the weapon to the side and the pair joined the other at the end of the alley.

The Puerto Rican raised a hand. “If you guys don’t have anywhere to go, I’ve got a pretty sweet set up in an abandoned building. I’ve got some med kits and it’s not too far away.” He cast a glance at Gavin who was leaning heavily against the wall. A scrap of cloth had been tired around the wound on his arm.

“Sounds like a great idea.” Jack stepped over the ashy remains of shadows and men as she entered the larger alley. She checked either side and held her gun at the ready. “Lead on.”

Ray slipped his hoodie back over his head and stuck his hands in his pockets, walking like it was simply a stroll through the streets.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there's the end of the first fight. Sorry about the delay. Literally rewrote the thing three times before I was at least sorta satisfied with it. We took out the evil Shadles and got a Ray back in the game. Shout out to Pistachio for guessing! I sorta left his name off the list at first because I wasn't positive I'd work him in or not. Just couldn't resist. Highly suggest you check out the Slow Mo Guys video of a fire tornado as that was my reference for Michael's fire. Second reference was How To Train Your Dragon dragon fire because liquid fire is supes cool. Let me know if anything is confusing/wrong!


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